DOCS: Man charged with murder in deadly Tacoma store robbery; linked to other armed robberies
Teen accused of killing shop owner pleads not guilty
According to the prosecuting attorney for Pierce County, 18-year-old Angel Anthony Mendez was charged with first-degree aggravated murder, first-degree murder, two counts of assault in the first-degree, second-degree assault, first-degree robbery and attempted first-degree robbery.
TACOMA, Wash. - A man who prosecutors say shot and killed a clerk during a robbery at The Little Store in Tacoma was charged with murder on Friday. The 18-year-old has also been linked to other armed robberies in the city, according to court documents.
According to the prosecuting attorney for Pierce County, 18-year-old Angel Anthony Mendez was charged with first-degree aggravated murder, first-degree murder, two counts of assault in the first-degree, second-degree assault, first-degree robbery and attempted first-degree robbery.
Just after 1 p.m. on Oct. 3, Tacoma Police officers were dispatched to The Little Store on the corner of S Ainsworth Ave. and S 35th St. for reports of a shooting.
When police arrived, they discovered the victim was Seok Chul "Charlie" Park, the owner of the store. Park was found lying on his back in the opening of the front door to the business. As officers were pulling into the scene, they saw a witness performing chest compressions on Park.
Officers took over, performing CPR on the victim. In doing so, they found a single gunshot wound in the middle of his chest.
Officers and medical personnel continued giving the victim medical care, but he was declared dead at the scene about a half hour after the initial 911 call.
WITNESS INTERVIEWS
According to court documents, one of the other store employees was working at the register at the time of the incident. He told police he was inside the store when the suspect walked in with a black hoodie asking about the price of an e-cigarette.
When the employee gave the suspect the price, the suspect pulled out a trash bag, placed it on the counter and told him to fill it up. At the same time, the suspect pointed a gun at him.
The employee pushed the emergency button under the counter, which calls the owner’s residence nearby. He then ran out the front door to the owner’s house. As soon as he got there, he heard a gunshot, ran back and found the victim laying on the ground.
According to court documents, another witness interviewed at the scene was the victim’s son – who arrived shortly after the shooting. He provided officers with access to surveillance footage that captured several angles of the shooting.
In the surveillance video, detectives saw Park running out from the back of the store shortly after the other employee ran out the front door. He stopped where the suspect had been standing at the counter and raised his hands in surrender.
About five seconds later, Park falls to his knees. He straightens up with his hands still in the air and falls down again. He crawled toward the front door with an apparent bloodstain on his back from the gunshot wound.
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ANOTHER SIMILAR ROBBERY
On Oct. 4, the next day, another similar robbery was reported at the EZ Mart food store near the corner of S 34th St. and South C St.
Responding officers located the two suspects walking eastbound on S 34th St. Officers commanded them to stop and get on the ground, but the suspects ignored them. As the officers got closer, one officer deployed his taser, striking and incapacitating one of the suspects. That suspect was later identified as 18-year-old Angel Mendez. The other suspect was identified as 16-year-old Juan Manuel Calvario.
During Mendez’s arrest, officers recovered a firearm, a "ghost gun" loaded with 11 rounds of 9mm ammunition – which was the same make and caliber of one of the expended shell casings found at The Little Store.
The detective investigating the robbery at The Little Store responded to the robbery scene at the EZ Mart. She noticed that the blue balaclava face mask that was found on Mendez was the same one the suspect was seen wearing during The Little Store robbery. Additionally, the suspect’s two-toned gun matched the gun seen in surveillance video from the prior robbery.
According to court documents, after reviewing surveillance video from the EZ Mart, the detective noticed that Mendez’s actions "mimicked those of the suspect on the surveillance video from The Little Store."
After examining the ghost gun at the Crime Lab, it was determined that the shell casing from the Oct. 3 incident and the ammunition found inside the gun on Oct. 4 were a match.
At this time, detectives are still working to figure out if Calvario was involved in the Oct. 3 robbery at The Little Store.
The investigation remains ongoing.
This is a developing story.