Man fatally shot in Tacoma is identified by Pierce County medical examiner
A 41-year-old man fatally shot late last month in Tacoma’s Eastside neighborhood was identified Friday by the medical examiner.
Ta’ape Nunu of Spanaway died of a gunshot wound to the head, according to a news release from the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office. It ruled his death a homicide.
Police said the victim was found shot April 28 in the 500 block of East 34th Street after dispatchers received reports of gunshots in that area about 10:47 p.m. Police said 911 callers also reported hearing the sound of vehicles driving away. Officers responded and found Nunu unresponsive in a vehicle which had struck two parked, unoccupied vehicles.
Nunu was brought to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. A week later, on May 5, police said he was pronounced dead and said it was investigating the shooting as a homicide.
Police have not disclosed any details of the shooting. It’s unclear what led up to it or how many people were involved. On Friday, police spokesperson Wendy Haddow said no one had been arrested and that she had no further updates to report.
Court records show Nunu had a violent criminal history in Pierce and King counties. He was charged in King County Superior Court in April 2010 with second-degree murder. According to the weekly newspaper Westside Seattle, he was accused of robbing a woman of beer and cigarettes at a SeaTac motel and then beating a man to death. Records show he pleaded guilty in October of that year to second-degree assault causing substantial bodily harm and first-degree robbery.
He was convicted in September of third-degree assault for attacking a Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputy responding to a domestic-violence call involving Nunu, according to court records.
Relatives of Nunu said he was a man with a big heart who loved spending time with his nieces and nephews, according to a GoFundMe set up by to help pay for the cost of a memorial. They said he enjoyed music and skateboarding.
This story was originally published May 13, 2022 at 12:49 PM.
