A 26-year-old man with 13 felony convictions faces charges of first-degree murder and second-degree assault after he allegedly shot one man and injured another during a robbery attempt at a Auburn boat repair shop.
Rigoberto Alvarado is scheduled to be arraigned April 30 in King County Superior Court at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. He remains in custody at the county jail at the Regional Justice Center with bail denied.
On the night of March 31, Alvarado reportedly fatally shot Greg Deckman, 56, once in the chest and pistol whipped in the head a 53-year-old co-worker of Deckman’s after demanding money from both men, according to charging papers filed April 16. The men were working in a boat repair shop in the 3500 block of C Street Northeast.
“While only 26 years old, this defendant has already amassed 13 felony convictions, as both a juvenile and as an adult,” wrote Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jessica Berliner in charging documents.
“On this occasion, the defendant shot and killed a man and pistol whipped another simply because they did not have money to surrender to him or were not surrendering it fast enough,” Berliner said. “The surviving victim told detectives that the defendant seemed unfazed by the shooting of the victim at close range. The utter senselessness of this murder and assault belies the extreme danger the defendant presents to the community.”
The man pistol whipped suffered a fractured skull with bleeding on the brain, according to Auburn Police. During surgery, medical staff removed 25 bone fragments from his skull.
Alvarado reportedly entered the front door of the shop where the two men were cleaning and held up a gun to Deckman and demanded money. Deckman told him he didn’t have any money, so Alvarado reportedly fired a shot into his chest. Deckman died at the scene. He then demanded money from the other man, who told him he would hand over his wallet from his pants pocket. Alvarado then allegedly struck him in the back of the head with a pistol and fled the shop.
Auburn detectives reviewed and obtained surveillance video from the scene, traffic intersections and other local businesses. From the video, they were able to obtain footage of the shooter and the truck used to drive him to and from the scene. They also were able to identify a witness. Detectives were identified the shooter and later tracked down the truck used during the shooting.
Three people were in the truck after the shooting, according to police. Alvarado, listed as a transient in police documetns, and one other person were located, the other person has yet to be found.
Police initially arrested Alvarado April 10 for investigation of trespassing and a drug charge, although there was some trouble in finding out his true identity, police said. Three days later, police arrested him for investigation of murder and assault in the boat shop shooting.
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