Bail set for man accused of robbery in Tuesday shooting near Lacey area church, school
A 20-year-old man accused of engaging in a shootout near a Lacey area church Tuesday is being held in the Thurston County jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.
Jordan Wayne Kirkendall attended his preliminary hearing in Thurston County Superior Court on Wednesday, after deputies arrested him late Tuesday evening on suspicion of first-degree robbery and assault. He’s accused of robbing a man who met him to purchase fentanyl, an opioid that is 50-100 times stronger than morphine.
The incident occurred before 9:50 p.m. in a parking lot on the 7500 block of Sixth Avenue Southeast. St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church is adjacent to that block, which is also near Lydia Hawk Elementary School.
Deputies know of a second suspect who allegedly took part in incident, Lt. Cameron Simper has said, but court and jail records indicate this person has not yet been arrested.
Judge Carol Murphy found probable cause for the alleged crimes.
In light of the allegations, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Wayne Graham requested the court set bail at $100,000. He said this request was “somewhat low but fair,” given Kirkendall’s lack of adult criminal history.
“When they attempted to take (the alleged victim’s) money without providing him the product, they shot at his back window, dragged him from his car and beat him up to the point that another individual actually intervened,” Graham said.
A neighbor reportedly observed the incident and fired a gun toward the suspects as they fled from the scene. Graham called this person a “good Samaritan.”
“How (the neighbor) engaged is amazing to me,” Graham said. “Shots had been fired from the vehicle that (the suspects) were driving away in. Shots were then returned towards the vehicle. Mr. Kirkendall was actually struck by one of those returned fire shots.”
Deputies later located Kirkendall at Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia where he was being treated for a gunshot wound.
Defense Attorney Ahmed Jenkins asked the court to release Kirkendall on his personal recognizance. He said most of the allegations came from the alleged victim, a person he claimed may have lied about his involvement in the shooting.
Court records indicate some witnesses said they saw the alleged victim fire a gun as well. When deputies questioned him about this, the alleged victim reportedly denied having a firearm.
Graham said investigators found multiple shell casings in the parking lot of the church as well as the exit of the parking lot. He said this evidence aligned with the accounts of the alleged victim and the neighbor who fired shots.
In setting the $50,000 bail, Murphy reasoned Kirkendall may commit a violent crime or interfere with the case if he is released. She also barred him from contacting the alleged victim and witnesses.
The investigation
A probable cause statement describes the investigation from the perspective of law enforcement.
A deputy located the alleged victim surrounded by several people at the scene. One person told the deputy they shot at the fleeing suspects and their gun was laying on the ground, according to the statement.
The deputy secured the handgun and spoke with the alleged victim. He told the deputy he was shot at, but not shot. However, the statement says he had cuts, scrapes and bruises on him.
The man reportedly admitted to arranging to meet with a person at the parking lot to buy fentanyl. The statement says he only started messaging this person on Snapchat earlier that morning.
The man parked in the parking lot and waited for his contact to arrive. A darker four-door sedan eventually parked two spaces away from him, according to the statement.
Two armed men exited the sedan and stood on opposite sides of the alleged victim’s car. He argued with the two men for a little while before Kirkendall allegedly fired a round through the driver side rear window.
The alleged victim told the deputy the men pulled him from the vehicle and proceeded to punch, stomp and pistol whip him multiple times, according to the statement. He told deputies they took his fanny pack, which contained his keys, wallet and $1,100 in cash.
The two men reportedly then drove away while firing shots towards the alleged victim. This drew the attention of multiple witnesses in the area.
Some of the witnesses said they saw the alleged victim firing a gun as well. However, he denied those claims, saying he was not allowed to have a gun by court order.
Deputies then learned Kirkendall had checked in at Providence St. Peter Hospital with a gunshot wound. They met him there and determined he was a suspect.
The alleged victim later identified Kirkendall in a line-up of six photos, alleging he was the person who shot at him, according to court records. Deputies then arrested Kirkendall once hospital staff cleared him.
Kirkendall’s arraignment hearing has been scheduled for March 28.
