Fifth suspect charged in Ruddell Road slaying; held on $1 million bail

The fifth suspect in an Oct. 21 fatal shooting was arrested early Thursday morning, and will likely face murder charges.

Andre D. Wiley Jr., 21, of Lacey appeared before Thurston County Superior Court Judge Anne Hirsch on Thursday afternoon. Bail was set at $1 million. The judge found probable cause for three felony charges: first-degree murder, first-degree assault while armed with a deadly weapon, and first-degree robbery while armed with a deadly weapon.

Before his arrest, Wiley had been receiving treatment for gunshot wounds at Providence St. Peter Hospital. He and fellow suspect Dallas F. Martin, 17, arrived at the hospital shortly after the shooting at a home on the 6100 block of Ruddell Road that killed Alex Thomas-Anderson, 19.

Attorney Eric Pilon, of the Office of Assigned Counsel, said Wiley had been shot three times. He said that because of his injuries, Wiley isn’t a flight risk, and he has no criminal history.

But Hirsch said that from her point of view, Wiley is indistinguishable from his co-defendant, Martin. Martin is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, attempted first-degree assault, and unlawful possession of a firearm, and will be tried as an adult. He appeared Tuesday in Thurston County Superior Court, where bail was set at $1 million.

“Mr. Wylie is a threat to the community, he presents a danger to the community,” Hirsch said.

Three other people are charged in connection to the shooting:

▪ Tyler N. Bremer, 26, is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver while armed with a deadly weapon. He has no prior criminal convictions, but has pending misdemeanor charges in two other counties, according to the court. Bail was set at $150,000.

▪ Charles J. Tate, 27, is charged with one count of first-degree assault while armed with a firearm and one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver while armed. Bail was set at $150,000.

▪ Mateo A. Q. Rodriguez, 18, is charged with one count of second-degree assault while armed with a firearm and one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver while armed with a deadly weapon. Bail was set at $25,000.

Court documents give the following account of the incident:

The shooting occurred at Tate’s home on Ruddell Road, where Martin and Wiley allegedly had arrived to buy 20 ounces of marijuana for $3,500. The two suspects began arguing with Bremer because they believed he was armed. The first argument ended, and a short time later, Martin and Tate began to argue about money.

Wiley then allegedly pointed a gun at Bremer’s head, and they struggled on the couch. That’s when Martin allegedly pulled a gun from his pants and began shooting in the direction of Bremer.

A witness told detectives that Martin likely fired the shot that killed Thomas-Anderson, who had been sitting on the couch next to Bremer. Investigators say the suspect’s weapon was loaded with six hollow-point rounds and six slug-type rounds, and that the victim was likely shot by a hollow-point round.

Rodriguez, who allegedly had helped set up the marijuana deal, was standing near Martin when the shots were fired. Rodriguez took a gun away from Martin, then pointed the gun at another man in the room, told him to sit down and searched him for weapons. Rodriguez turned the gun over to law enforcement.

Martin and Wiley then fled the scene and were later found by law enforcement at the emergency room at Providence St. Peter Hospital. They had been dropped off by a white sedan that was registered to Wiley. The vehicle was seized as evidence, and blood was found inside.

Bremer told detectives that he fired his gun once after the initial shot was fired at Thomas-Anderson. Tate told detectives that he had grabbed a gun once shots had been fired at Wiley.

According to documents, the shooting inside the home was recorded on video.

This story was originally published October 29, 2015 at 11:08 AM with the headline "Fifth suspect charged in Ruddell Road slaying; held on $1 million bail."