Tacoma man killed in South End shooting in late July officially identified by ME
A Tacoma man who was killed in a South End shooting in late July has been identified by the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Ismael Merino-Ramirez, 28, died July 27 near the 9200 block of South Hosmer Street. His cause and manner of death are “pending,” the medical examiner said in a news release. That is a temporary designation used when additional investigation, information and/or test results are required for certification.
Adrian Ramirez Martinez, 27, was charged on Aug. 1 with second-degree murder and unlawful possession of a firearm while not being a U.S. citizen, court records show.
Ramirez Martinez is being held at Pierce County Jail on $2 million bail, The News Tribune previously reported.
Tacoma police officers were dispatched to the shooting scene just before 2 a.m. Police found Merino-Ramirez with a gunshot wound and began live-saving measures until fire personnel arrived. He died at the scene, the story said.
It is alleged that Ramirez Martinez killed Merino-Ramirez following an argument at a parking lot outside an apartment complex. A witness who was with Merino-Ramirez said the victim received a call from Ramirez Martinez, who invited him to the parking lot, charging documents show.
No one else was in the lot, documents show. The witness initially thought that Merino-Ramirez and Ramirez Martinez were arguing, but he later heard laughing as well. The witness told authorities he did not hear what they were talking about.
“When [the witness] ducked into the victim’s car to grab a phone charger, he heard the shot fired,” prosecutors wrote. “He then stood up, looked around and saw the victim holding his chest while telling him to call the police.”
Ramirez Martinez then allegedly drove away in a mid-2000s gray Honda Civic, court documents show.
Ramirez Martinez is ineligible to possess a firearm, according to court documents. He was extradited to Mexico from the United States in September 2016 and banned from reentry for two decades.
This story was originally published August 14, 2024 at 3:32 PM.
