6th person arrested in Ruddell Road fatal shooting, will face murder charge

A sixth suspect appeared before Thurston County Superior Court Judge Anne Hirsch on Tuesday in connection with the Oct. 21 fatal shooting of Alex Thomas-Anderson at a Ruddell Road home.

Hirsch set bail at $100,000 for Devion D. Hammond, 19, and found probable cause for three charges: first-degree murder, first-degree attempted robbery while armed with a deadly weapon and rendering criminal assistance.

Hammond was arrested Monday night.

According to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation is ongoing and more arrests may be made.

Hammond is the third person in the case to be charged with murder. Andre D. Wiley, 21, and Dallas F. Martin, 17, were both charged with first-degree murder, and Hirsch set bail at $1 million in their cases.

She said she set a lower bail amount for Hammond because he had a lesser involvement in Thomas-Anderson’s death. He allegedly remained in a parked car during the shooting and attempted robbery.

“I don’t believe he rises to the same level as some of the co-defendants in this case,” 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:

Thurston County Sheriff’s deputies responded to reports of gunshots in the 6100 block of Ruddell Road at 8:55 p.m. Oct. 21. When they arrived, they located Tate, who said there was a man inside who had been shot. That man was later identified as Thomas-Anderson.

A short time later, Olympia police officers responded to Providence St. Peter Hospital after two men with gunshot wounds were dropped off. Those men were identified as Martin and Wiley.

Detectives learned that Martin and Wiley had arranged to purchase 20 ounces of marijuana from Rodriguez and another man for $3,500. When they arrived at the home, they noticed that Bremer was carrying a gun, and they argued.

The argument was resolved, but Martin and Tate began arguing about money.

Deputies say a video from an in-home surveillance system shows that Wiley ran across the room and held a gun against Bremer’s head. Bremer reached for the gun, and the two struggled for control of the weapon. The magazine may have fallen out of Wiley’s gun, and Bremer took out his own gun and possibly fired at Wiley.

Martin ran toward Bremer and Wiley, pulling out his own gun. The video shows Martin aiming his gun and possibly firing shots at Bremer.

Thomas-Anderson and Bremer had been sitting side-by-side on the couch. During the struggle, Thomas-Anderson had been leaning away from Bremer. The video shows Thomas-Anderson being shot in the abdomen.

Detectives report that Thomas-Anderson likely hadn’t been involved in the drug transaction.

“Based on this, it is law enforcement’s belief that Martin was attempting to shoot Bremer but struck Thomas-Anderson instead,” court documents say.

Wiley and Martin fled the home before deputies arrived. Hammond told detectives that he had driven to the home with Martin and Wiley, but remained in the car. He said he drove them to the hospital.

He said that after dropping off Martin and Wiley, he gave a bag containing money and one of the guns to a woman who met him at the hospital.

This story was originally published November 3, 2015 at 10:00 AM with the headline "6th person arrested in Ruddell Road fatal shooting, will face murder charge."