Man arrested in shooting near Tacoma’s Wright Park. He claimed victim was serial killer
A 34-year-old man has been charged with a shooting that left another man injured near Tacoma’s Wright Park in Tacoma.
The man is accused of shooting the victim multiple times Sunday in the area of South 5th Street and Tacoma Avenue South. The victim survived. A suspect was not immediately identified, according to a previous News Tribune story.
A 34-year-old man was arrested Wednesday at North Yakima Avenue and North 11th Street by Tacoma police and SWAT. He was booked into Pierce County Jail, and prosecutors charged him with first-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, court records show.
A plea of not guilty was entered on the man’s behalf at his arraignment on Thursday. Pierce County Superior Court commissioner Barbara McInvaille set his bail at $700,000, records show.
Detectives identified the suspect through surveillance footage, witness statements and speaking with the victim, court records show.
A witness told police she heard shotsthat day and saw a man running away through Wright Park with a ski mask. A ski mask was found in the park, and detectives noted some long hair strands. The 34-year-old man had long hair prior to the shooting, according to charging documents.
Detectives spoke to the victim later on at the hospital. He said the man had been trying to shoot him because he thinks the victim is a serial killer. The victim said the man lived in a clean-and-sober house off Yakima Avenue. The victim also stated that he recognized the man during the shooting from his voice and walk, documents show.
Detectives were aware of the man from an unrelated investigation and knew he lived in a halfway house, prosecutors wrote.
Detectives contacted the manager of the halfway house, who said the defendant shaved his head on Sunday or Monday, prosecutors wrote. The man told the house manager he shaved his hair for a job interview.
Detectives searched the man’s room and found a jacket that appeared to match the one that the shooter was wearing. They also discovered ammunition, prosecutors wrote.
Following his arrest, the man allegedly told detectives he believed there was a group of serial killers on the loose. He claimed that the victim was a serial killer. The man denied being the shooter or being in the area. He admitted to going to the crime scene after seeing the shooting reported on Facebook, documents show.
The man has previously been convicted of second-degree assault, records show.
