Editor's note 5:45 p.m.: This story has been updated with a corrected age and the name of the man.
A 24-year-old man died early Friday after a three-story fall from the escalator, the Bellevue Police Department reported.
The man, identified as Joel Bush, was sitting on the railing of the escalator as if to ride it when he fell backward into the atrium, said spokeswoman Lt. Marcia Harnden.
"I don't know if he didn't realize how high up he was," Harnden said. "It's a 60-foot drop."
The man suffered head injuries and CPR was performed on him, but he died at the scene, she said.
She said witnesses had seen the man out and about earlier in the evening at the center, which includes bars and restaurants, a pool hall and bowling alley and the Lincoln Square Cinemas movie theater.
Police are investigating whether alcohol was involved, but it appears the incident was just an accident, she said.
"It was traumatic for the people who saw it, and it was unfortunate and tragic for him," Harnden said.
