A Tacoma boy who was 14 when he allegedly participated in the stabbing death of another teenager will be prosecuted as an adult.
Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist announced the decision this afternoon. Lindquist charged Cristobal Arroyo, now 15, with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery in the June 1, 2012, death of Hector Hernandez-Valdez.
Arroyo will be arraigned Friday in Superior Court.
Prosecutors contend Arroyo and his brother, Luis Arroyo, then 16, attacked Hernandez-Valdez at their home in the 800 block of East 52nd Street with a knife and a shank, stabbing him dozens of times before dumping the dying boy into a bathtub where one of them then cut his throat.
They then stashed his body inside a recycling bin where it was found by their mother, court records show.
Luis Arroyo, who’s also being prosecuted as an adult, already has pleaded not guilty. He’s jailed in lieu of $2 million bail.
Prosecutors suspect the brothers attacked Hernandez-Valdez, 15, so they could rob him of marijuana and cash.
The boys told detectives they attacked Hernandez-Valdez after he punched Luis Arroyo for no reason, court records show.
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