Drive-by shooting suspect killed near Eatonville when homeowner returns fire

A man who went to shoot up an Eatonville-area home Wednesday morning was shot and killed when the homeowner returned fire, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.

The shooting happened about 7:15 a.m. at a mobile home in the 43100 block of Mountain Highway East, sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

The homeowner called 911 to say he had shot someone after a white car with several occupants pulled into his driveway and fired multiple shots into the bedroom area of the trailer, Troyer said.

“At this point, it looks like a justifiable shooting,” Troyer said.

The other occupants of the car fled the scene, leaving behind their critically wounded companion and his handgun, Troyer said. Deputies attempted to revive the 26-year-old, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sheriff’s deputies stopped the car along Canyon Road East near 196th Street about 7:35 a.m. A 31-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy were arrested in the car, Troyer said. The dog in the car was taken to animal control and the vehicle was towed.

The man was booked into Pierce County Jail on Wednesday afternoon on suspicion of first-degree murder, and the boy was booked into Remann Hall.

The snowy crime scene had bundled-up deputies wielding propane torches Wednesday afternoon, melting the snow while searching for shell casings.

The homeowner’s son was involved in a previous incident with the shooters, Troyer said, one of whom threatened to “shoot up the house.”

“What that incident is still has to be investigated,” Troyer said.

The father armed himself after his son told him of the threat, Troyer said. He went to the door of his home, along a long, dead-end driveway, and that is when the assailants began to shoot.

“The people that came up here we believe came up here with the intent to fire upon the people that were in the residence,” Troyer said. “Fortunately, the people in the residence aren’t hurt, but the people that showed up suffered the brunt of the damage.”

This story was originally published February 21, 2018 at 11:38 AM with the headline "Drive-by shooting suspect killed near Eatonville when homeowner returns fire."