Tacoma man who died in Yakima Valley crash wasn’t shot after all, autopsy shows

An autopsy has shown that a Tacoma man died because of a head-on car crash, not a gunshot wound as initially believed.

Washington State Patrol troopers at the scene Saturday thought Joel M. Reyes’ neck wound was from a bullet when they found him after the collision.

A car he was a passenger in with four others crossed the center line, slamming into an oncoming pickup truck with two men from Kennewick.

WSP Trooper Chris Thorson told the Herald on Tuesday that an autopsy found the 22-year-old Tacoma man died as a result of crash injuries, and the driver is now facing vehicular homicide charges.

Reyes was a passenger in a Toyota Camry heading east on Highway 22 in the Toppenish city limits, said a WSP release. The Camry hit the Chevy Silverado heading in the opposite direction.

The Camry’s driver Homero Lemus, 22, of Tacoma, ran from the crash but was arrested Monday night and booked into the Yakima County jail on suspicion of vehicular homicide, hit-and-run and attempting to elude police.

Another passenger, Dillon A. Woodward, 21, of Puyallup, also ran and was identified on Monday, said the WSP.

The driver and passenger of the Silverado, Jason A. Reno, 51, and Lahela U. Kaahanui, 44, both of Kennewick, were taken along with a third passenger in the car who was from Fife, to Multicare Yakima Memorial Hospital.

Their conditions were not immediately available.

This story was originally published January 24, 2023 at 12:05 PM.