Man on bicycle shot fleeing South Hill home has died. His stepson is charged with murder
A man suspected of shooting his mother’s estranged husband in their South Hill neighborhood is facing murder charges after the 33-year-old victim died this week.
Pierce County prosecutors on Wednesday charged Tylor Saegert, 20, with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, drive-by shooting and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
He pleaded not guilty at arraignment. Superior Court Commissioner Sabrina Ahrens set bail at $1 million.
Investigators believe Saegert fatally shot Brian Ray Ragan, 33, Friday morning as the victim fled the family’s house on a bicycle.
Ragan was in critical condition for several days before dying at Tacoma General Hospital. He died of a gunshot wound to the head, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Saegert turned himself in to deputies hours after the shooting.
Charging papers give this account:
Saegert awoke Friday to his mom arguing with Ragan. He allegedly left on foot and returned in a Dodge Charger.
A witness said the couple had been arguing the night before and the dispute lasted into the morning hours.
Ragan came to the house in the 13100 block of 122nd Street East demanding a cell phone and his estranged wife told him to leave, according to court records.
He jumped on the woman’s car with a brick but rode off on his bicycle after Saegert returned home, records say.
Saegert and two other men in the house followed Ragan in the Dodge Charger, prompting several 911 calls from neighbors concerned about the bicyclist being chased by a car.
One of the men in the car told deputies they got out of the vehicle after seeing Saegert had a gun. They watched Ragan ride his bike through an opening in a fence, then saw Saegert fire two shots before speeding away.
They heard a few more gunshots afterward.
Deputies responded to the neighborhood and found Ragan suffering from a gunshot wound to the back of the head in a backyard in the 12000 block of 132nd Street.
Surveillance footage from a few homes in the area back up the witnesses’ stories about seeing a Dodge Charger chase after Ragan on a bike. Two gunshots can then be heard on the video.
Bullet damage was found to the fence and one bullet went through a nearby house before landing in the kitchen sink.
Saegert has prior convictions for residential burglary, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, first-degree theft and theft of a firearm, according to Pierce County court records.
His defense attorney, Bryan Hershman, said the defendant has had a clean record since he was 15, is the father of a 2-year-old girl and works two jobs.
He also contended Ragan was abusive, broke into his estranged wife’s house the morning of the shooting and had multiple protection orders filed against him.
There is no record of Saegert’s mother filing for a protection order against Ragan, but other women have in the past.
In 2010, Ragan’s ex-wife filed for protection claiming he threw her on a bed by her neck in front of her children while he was drunk.
Another woman asked for a protection order after he allegedly dragged her to a trailer and punched her in the back after a night of drinking. She also claimed he pushed her hard enough to sprain her knee and once threw a coffee pot at her.
This story was originally published August 28, 2019 at 2:27 PM.
