A second person accused of firing gunshots during a mass shooting that wounded seven people at a busy Lakewood park turned himself in Wednesday and has been charged with four counts of first-degree assault.
Charging documents allege that 17-year-old Jonathan G. Williams-Comoza was challenged to a fight at Harry Todd Park by then-18-year-old Na’Quarius Tyshawn Seale. The older teen allegedly drew a handgun and fired at Williams-Comoza, and evidence suggests the younger teen returned fire with a handgun modified to be fully automatic, injuring four people.
It doesn’t appear that Seale was injured. Bullets allegedly fired by Seale or the group he was with struck Williams-Comoza in the arm and the knee. Two people who were standing behind Williams-Comoza also were struck when the gunfire began.
Lakewood Sgt. Charles Porche said Williams-Comoza showed up at the Pierce County Jail on Wednesday to turn himself in. Jail records show he was transferred to Remann Hall, the county’s juvenile detention center.
The News Tribune generally does not name juveniles charged with a crime. Williams-Comoza is being identified because, due to the seriousness of his charges and his age, he will automatically be charged as an adult. He was expected to appear Thursday afternoon in Superior Court to be arraigned on the assault charges and an additional charge of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Police said Seale was arrested in the Seattle area last week. He pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree assault and remains in custody at the Pierce County Jail on $2 million bail.
Porche said Seale and Williams-Comoza had been identified as the primary suspects in the May 28 shooting, but investigators were still working the case. A probable cause document prepared by a Lakewood detective shows they weren’t the only two believed to have fired gunshots.
The probable cause document also described how the shooting might have been connected to two gang-related homicides that occurred in Tacoma in April. The detective wrote that one of the victims was found to be Williams-Comoza’s best friend and high school football teammate, and members of a gang Seale was connected to livestreamed themselves kicking and stomping a memorial site made for the victim.
Investigators identified Seale and Williams-Comoza as being involved based on witness videos, scene evidence, social-media posts and witness identifications, records show.