Suspect in shooting of singer arrested

DENVER — A man suspected of shooting Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Marc Cohn during an attempted carjacking was arrested after a 5 ½-hour standoff with police.

Cohn, who had a hit with the song "Walking in Memphis" and won the Grammy for best new artist in 1992, was shot in the temple late Sunday when a man fired into his band's van in a parking garage.

Cohn, who is married to ABC news reporter Elizabeth Vargas, was treated at a hospital and released Monday. He canceled the remaining five stops on his tour with Suzanne Vega.

The bullet grazed Thomas Dube, Cohn's driver and tour manager, who also was treated and released.

Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said the bullet appeared to have been slowed by the van's windshield and by Dube before hitting Cohn. "Frankly, I can't tell you how he survived," Jackson said.

Police arrested Joseph William Yacteen late Monday outside a vacant house where he had holed up for hours, negotiating with police. The standoff ended when he was forced out by tear gas, pointed a gun at officers and was shot with a nonlethal rubber ball, Jackson said.

According to police, Yacteen tried to stop Cohn's van after fleeing a downtown hotel where he had tried to pay his bill with a stolen credit card.

Dube, who saw that Yacteen had a gun, sped up and swerved to try to avoid him, police said, and Yacteen fired one shot into the van. The van was carrying four people at the time.

Yacteen also allegedly fired several shots while fleeing security guards and trying to take a car from a woman. He disappeared in a stolen SUV, then was located at the vacant house, authorities said.

Yacteen, 26, was being held on suspicion of attempted murder, robbery and other charges. In addition, an arrest warrant had been issued after he missed a court hearing July 15 on a drug and weapons charge.