Alleged getaway driver in fatal robbery of Lakewood store owner appears in court
An alleged getaway driver in the fatal stabbing of a Lakewood convenience store owner appeared in court Wednesday.
Prosecutors charged 20-year-old Bonifacio Alvarez Reynolds and the suspected stabber, 24-year-old Marcus Louise Williams, with murder Friday.
They’re accused in the Oct. 14 death of 59-year-old In Cha Choe, who owned the McChord Mart at 5105 Solberg Dr. SW.
Police said Tuesday that Alvarez Reynolds had turned himself in and that they were still looking for Williams.
Alvarez Reynolds pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder at arraignment, and Pierce County Superior Court Commissioner Craig Adams set bail at $2 million.
Charging papers give this account of what happened:
Shortly before 10 p.m., a man walked the aisles of the store and took a bottle of barbecue sauce to the register
He walked behind the counter, pushed Choe away and reached for the register.
Choe tried to pull his hands away, and he stabbed her in the abdomen, chest and arm.
He left with the money, and Choe followed with a collapsible baton.
They struggled, and he took off.
Choe closed the register, locked the door and went to her car outside.
She was found unconscious and was pronounced dead at Madigan Army Medical Center soon after.
Tips led to Williams, and DNA allegedly linked him to the bottle of barbecue sauce left by the register.
Investigators got information that Reynolds drove Williams to the store and waited down the street. He allegedly didn’t know Williams was going to stab the owner.
