2nd suspect arrested for fatal shooting of teen boy in Lakewood case of mistaken identity
A second person has been arrested for the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old boy outside a Lakewood townhouse in a case of mistaken identity.
Joseph Carl Gioiosa, 29, was taken into custody Saturday in Spanaway.
He is charged with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, drive-by shooting and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm for the Sept. 28 shooting of Damoni Nelson.
Nelson, of Federal Way, was shot in the forehead and died of his injuries Oct. 2.
A warrant has been out for Gioiosa’s arrest for nearly two months. Co-defendant Justin Coleman, 29, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, drive-by shooting and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Gioiosa pleaded not guilty at arraignment Monday. Superior Court Judge Matthew Thomas set bail at $1.5 million.
Police say Coleman was the shooter and Gioiosa was a passenger in his BMW.
Charging papers give this account of the homicide:
Coleman, reportedly a gang member, had recently been beaten up and possibly shot at by a rival gang member believed to be Nelson’s cousin.
The night of the shooting, Nelson and a friend attended a party at the Gravelly Lake Townhomes in the 13000 block of Pacific Highway SW. The teen’s cousin also was there.
The teenagers went to leave about 12:45 a.m. and were in Nelson’s sedan in the parking lot when they noticed a BMW pass them and then turn around.
Shots rang out.
Nelson’s passenger dove onto the floorboard and realized moments later that Nelson had been shot.
Nelson died Oct. 2.
“The following investigation has revealed no evidence suggesting (the victims) were the truly intended targets of the shooting,” prosecutors wrote in charging papers.
Police believe Coleman and Gioiosa were looking for Nelson’s cousin and either shot Nelson because they didn’t realize who he was or because they knew he was associated with the rival gang member they’d sworn revenge on.
Surveillance footage from an apartment complex four miles away from the scene showed Coleman and Gioiosa leaving in the BMW nine minutes before the shooting. Video footage from the Gravelly Lake Townhouses shows the same BMW pulling into the parking lot where Nelson was shot one minute before the incident, records say.
Investigators also obtained search warrants for Coleman and Gioiosa’s cell phones, which allegedly prove they were together in the area of the shooting.
Facebook messages dating back weeks before the shooting show they were trying to get revenge on Nelson’s cousin.
Coleman was arrested Oct. 6 and admitted it was him in the surveillance footage from the apartment complex but denied being involved in the shooting.
Detectives say Nelson and his friend were not involved with gangs.
The teen played football and ran track at Federal Way High School and was known as a good student who took advanced courses.
This story was originally published December 7, 2020 at 10:52 AM.
