2 sisters planned robbery that ended with killing of Tacoma man, charges say
Two sisters are accused of planning a robbery that ended with a Tacoma man being beaten to death with an air compressor last year.
Prosecutors charged both Pamela Jay Gabrilski-Jones, 46, and Marian Jones, 43, with first-degree murder and first-degree burglary. Gabrilski-Jones is charged with second-degree conspiracy to commit robbery, while Jones is charged with first-degree of that charge.
Both sisters are accused of persuading Christopher Charles Reyes, 47, to rob 56-year-old William Akers of narcotics and money. Things took a turn and Akers was found dead from multiple blunt-force injuries on Nov. 27.
Reyes has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and pleaded not guilty. He is being held at the Pierce County Jail on a $2 million bail, court records show. Reyes’ next pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 18.
Pleas of not guilty were entered on the sisters’ behalves during their respective arraignment hearings Monday. Pierce County Superior Court Commissioner Barbara McInvaille set their bails at $1 million.
During the hearing, deputy prosecuting attorney Sunni Ko alleged that when detectives were looking for Gabrilski-Jones, Jones told them her sister was in Kansas. Ko said it appeared Gabrilski-Jones was still in Pierce County after detectives looked at street camera footage and saw her driving in the area.
“… Miss Pamela and her sister Marian were very, very much involved and not only solicited but also conspired to commit these tragic crimes,” Ko said.
Charging details
Officials were dispatched around 9:30 p.m. to the 7400 block of South Oakes Street after a man was found cold and stiff to the touch with “lots of blood,” according to charging documents.
Gabrilski-Jones’ brother is who apparently found Akers dead in the garage. He told officials his father owned the property and Akers was living in the detached shed on the property. Gabrilski-Jones also lived on the property, documents show.
After Tacoma firefighters attempted CPR when they arrived, Akers was declared dead at the scene.
Officers found a 34-pound air compressor that had blood on it. Documents show it appeared Akers had been killed hours prior to him being found.
Akers was a suspected narcotics dealer and user. Suspected narcotics and $1,700 was found on him during the autopsy preparations.
Reyes was identified as a suspect after an anonymous tip came through alleging that Gabrilski-Jones told her daughter she and a man she just met set up a robbery targeting Akers.
Gabrilski-Jones was released from the Nisqually Jail the day before Akers’ body was found, documents show. In an interview with Gabrilski-Jones, she told detectives she met Reyes, nicknamed “Webo,” during the transport from the jail. Reyes asked for a ride somewhere north, and Gabrilski-Jones asked her sister, Marian Jones, to go with them.
Gabrilski-Jones said that she, Reyes and Jones went to the South Oakes property. Reyes went inside to buy drugs from Akers, and when he came out he had a small amount of blood on his shirt. She told police he said, “I think I killed that guy.” She also denied setting up a robbery.
Investigators also interviewed Jones who said that she was in the car outside her dad’s house with her sister and Reyes. She said she did not see or hear anything after Reyes returned from the garage to buy drugs as she had earbuds in her ears.
Timeline of suspected events
Gabrilski-Jones, Jones and Reyes reportedly checked into a motel in Tacoma on 76th Street that evening. They were seen through surveillance going in and out throughout the night and into the early morning of Nov. 27.
At one point the three left the motel around 3:11 a.m. Reyes and both sisters returned an hour later. Gabrilski-Jones briefly left and re-entered the motel with clothes in her arms, charging documents show.
Both sisters left the motel at 4:36 a.m, and Reyes checked out at 7 a.m., documents show.
Reyes was arrested Jan. 6.
In an interview with prosecutors in April, Reyes said Gabrilski-Jones and Jones had conspired for him to rob Akers.
Reyes gave a timeline of events, and said both sisters told him they saw Akers with “4,000 cash and almost 2 ounces of heroin.” He alleged that Jones suggested he rob the victim because Reyes did not know anyone and could get away with it, documents show. Reyes allegedly agreed.
Reyes said when he asked if Akers would fight back, Jones said he would get scared and hand over the drugs. Documents show that when Reyes allegedly tried to rob Akers, he fought back.
Reyes told prosecutors Jones showed him the detached garage. She got him a mask and gloves, documents show. Reyes said Jones wanted to get him a gun, but could not find one.
The plan was allegedly set in motion after Gabrilski-Jones secured the dogs guarding the property, documents show. According to Reyes, he went inside the garage once he got a text message that it was safe to do so. Reyes allegedly tried to rob Akers and struck him with the air compressor. He said that after Akers was down, he could not find anything in the victim’s pockets.
Reyes said he ran to the designated location to meet the sisters. They eventually found him and took him to the motel, documents show. The next day, Reyes said the women left and texted him to get a ride up north from a friend.
Detectives looked at Gabrilski-Jones’ phone records. They noted that after Akers was killed, she exchanged two messages with Reyes, documents show. They also called each other twice.
Gabrilski-Jones has several criminal convictions, including second-degree burglary from 2012 in Pierce County and failing to register as a sex offender in 2020, court records show. She also has an active bench warrant in Puyallup Municipal Court.
Jones has convictions dating back to 2002, including in 2020 for forgery in Pierce County.
This story was originally published August 19, 2025 at 11:49 AM.
