3 teens charged in multiple drive-by shootings in University Place and Tacoma
Three teenagers are suspected in a one-night crime spree that bounced between University Place and Tacoma with at least three drive-by shootings, a hit-and-run and a burglary.
The incidents took place Feb. 27.
On Wednesday, Pierce County prosecutors charged the trio, ages 16, 17 and 19, with five counts of drive-by shooting, one count of attempted second-degree murder, three counts of second-degree assault, one count of second-degree burglary, one count of second-degree malicious mischief, unlawful possession of a stolen vehicle and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Warrants have been issued for the two underage boys, who are not in custody.
The 19-year-old, who police say is a known gang member, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday afternoon.
Charging papers give this account:
The first drive-by shooting occurred at Hidden Hills apartments in the 7100 block of 32nd St. Ct. W. while parents and their 21-year-old son was home.
A bullet barely missed the son, who was sitting at his desk.
When asked if they knew anyone who might want to harm them, the parents told deputies another son who was not home had been running with the “wrong crowd,” records say.
About a half hour later, deputies responded to another drive-by in the 8400 block of 35th Street West.
A 30-year-old woman was home with her children, ages 1 and 4, when she heard a gunshot and found a bullet hole in her front window.
Nobody was injured, and she had no idea why anyone would shoot at her family.
Within minutes, another drive-by happened in the 6700 block of 57th Street West with shots fired through a bedroom window.
“Deputies were suspicious of a specific group of teenagers who they had been having trouble with over the past few weeks regarding who might be committing these drive-by shootings,” prosecutors wrote in charging papers.
The homeowner, a 50-year-old man, allegedly brought up the suspects’ names on his own. He mentioned one of the suspects was friends with his son and occasionally stayed at the home and had even taken a family vacation with them.
Fircrest police handled the next call, which was for a hit-and-run and burglary at the Allegra Terrace apartments at 3125 Bridgeport Way.
Witnesses and surveillance footage showed a truck pull in and strike two parked cars and the building before one person got out and broke into an apartment.
The apartment manager told officers the intruder kicked in a front door and broke out a window and sliding glass door, causing at least $2,100 in damages.
Around 8:20 p.m., not even an hour into the crime spree, a 50-year-old man was shot in the stomach while walking through a Tacoma parking lot in the 700 block of South 13th Street.
A security guard heard the shots and found the victim on the ground, suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen.
The victim was taken to an area hospital in critical condition but was expected to live.
Witnesses reported seeing a truck with three people inside speed away after the shooting.
Shortly afterward, deputies found the truck crashed into a pole near 51st Street West and Drum Road West.
Three men were standing outside the truck when a deputy shined a light on them.
The two underage boys were immediately taken into custody and the oldest was arrested after briefly trying to flee on foot.
A backpack dropped by them allegedly contained ammunition.
A rifle was found about 10 feet away, records say.
Deputies said the truck was reported stolen out of Tacoma.
One of the teenagers spoke to detectives and denied knowledge of the shootings. He claimed they’d stumbled across the crashed truck and decided to rummage through it, finding the ammunition.
The 19-year-old was on electronic home monitoring during the incident, after being released on his own recognizance in February.
In that case, he’s charged with second-degree kidnapping, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a stolen vehicle and unlawful delivery of materials for allegedly pulling a juvenile girl into his vehicle during an attempted drug deal and driving away.
Since then, prosecutors have also charged him in a robbery.
This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 11:21 AM.
