TNT’s top stories: Car tied to teen’s killing found, woman dies in Puyallup wreck

From a break in a Parkland teen’s murder case to a deadly Puyallup crash and a new centrist party led by Nirvana’s co-founder, here’s a roundup of the latest news affecting Pierce County. A decades-old Florida kidnapping case may also have ties to Tacoma.

• Police have found a car believed to be linked to the killing of 17-year-old Braylon Daniel Diaz, who was shot during a robbery of his jewelry in Parkland on May 24, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office told The News Tribune. The vehicle was discovered Wednesday evening in the Federal Way area and has been seized for forensics. Diaz, a student at Washington High School, was walking when a car pulled up and unknown individuals robbed and shot him, deputies said. A GoFundMe for his funeral expenses had raised nearly $25,000 as of Thursday afternoon.
• One person died and a woman in her 20s was seriously injured in a crash at Pioneer Way East and 33rd Street Southeast in Puyallup. The woman who died was 75 or 76 years old, according to Central Pierce Fire & Rescue.
• Fort Myers, Florida, police say new investigative leads suggest Bryan dos Santos Gomes, abducted at 28 days old in 2006, could be living in Tacoma today, unaware of what happened to him as a baby. He would now be 19 years old. Bryan’s mother was forced from her car at knifepoint by a woman who had asked for directions, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Authorities have released an age progression photo and a recording of the abductor’s voice in hopes someone will recognize her.
• The Cascade Party, a new centrist third party chaired by Nirvana co-founder Krist Novoselic, aims to offer a political home for Washingtonians tired of partisan extremes, addressing issues like public safety, housing and affordability. The party now counts more than 100 members. Gov. Bob Ferguson received the lowest approval ratings of any Washington governor this century during his first six months in office, with only 32% calling his performance “excellent” or “good” in a Cascade PBS/Elway poll. Forty-five percent of Americans identified as independents in a 2025 Gallup survey — the highest number since 1988.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by senior editor Adam Lynn. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.