PUYALLUP, Wash. — Two teens have been charged and a third is in custody after they shot and killed a woman in Puyallup in late February during an attempted robbery, police say.
The Puyallup Police Department (PPD) said it arrested Noah Maurice Loyd Branch, 18, Daemeion Carmello Purdy, 17, and another 18-year-old man on Tuesday after a months-long investigation into the death of Gianna Stone, 22.
Branch and Purdy were charged Wednesday with two counts second-degree murder, first-degree assault, first-degree attempted robbery, drive-by shooting and unlawful possession of a firearm. Prosecutors requested a 72-hour hold on the third suspect.
On Feb. 25, officers were called to 10th Avenue Northwest for reports of gunshots around 9 p.m. Puyallup police said they found shell cartridges in the street but no victims from a shooting.
Around 10 minutes later, Stone was checked into a Tacoma hospital with a gunshot wound to the head. Police said she eventually died at the hospital.
Police said the suspects were identified after a patrol officer recognized a vehicle at the scene of a "serious injury collision" that happened after the homicide. The driver in the incident had fled from a traffic stop and crashed near the Washington State Fair.
Initial investigative information released by police indicated that the shooting was believed to have stemmed from a confrontation between the suspects and the victim. Tuesday's release indicates that Puyallup detectives now have determined that the shooting was random and the confrontation began as an attempted robbery.
Police said Stone was in a car with five other friends at Sam Peach Park when the suspects approached with handguns and demanded their property. The driver fled, and the suspects shot at the car as it was leaving. Stone was struck in the head through the back windshield.
Police believe either Loyd Branch or Purdy was the shooter while a third suspect drove behind them with the headlights off, according to probable cause documents.
Cellphone data placed Loyd Branch and Purdy near Sam Peach Park on the night of the incident, police said.
The two adult suspects were booked into Pierce County Jail and the 17-year-old was booked into Remann Hall on suspicion of murder. Bail was set at $1 million for Loyd Branch and $1.5 million for Purdy.
