One dead after attempted shoplifting at Spanaway convenience store

A 21-year-old man was shot and killed late Friday at a convenience store and deli at 166th Street South and Pacific Avenue South in Spanaway, the same store where a clerk was shot during a robbery last month.

The Pierce County Medical Examiner’s office identified the dead man as Jakeel Mason of Tacoma.

Pierce County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Ed Troyer said the husband of the clerk who was shot last month was working at the store late Friday. Deputies believe there was a confrontation between him and men in the parking lot. The clerk asked the men to leave.

Around 10:40 p.m. a second confrontation occurred when two of the men came into the store. Deputies believe the men attempted to shoplift from the store, according to Troyer.

At some point during the confrontation, the clerk shot and killed Mason. He died at the scene.

The clerk was not arrested. Prosecutors will review the case and decide whether to charge him with the shooting death.

The other person involved in the incident remained at the scene to talk to investigators.

Troyer said detectives continue to investigate and are trying to determine the series of events that led to the shooting.

Mason had a criminal history prior to Friday’s incident, records show.

He pleaded guilty to unlawful imprisonment in 2014 for picking up a 6-year-old girl outside her Parkland house. The girl kicked and screamed and was able to escape. Mason was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

He was also convicted in 2015 of attempted second-degree burglary for an incident in Spanway.

This story was originally published March 25, 2016 at 10:41 AM with the headline "One dead after attempted shoplifting at Spanaway convenience store."