20-year-old ID’d as victim in garage party shooting near Tri-Cities
A 20-year-old Yakima man has been identified as the person who died after a gunman opened fire on a Benton City party.
Jesus A. Contreras Chacon was shot once in the back, said a Benton County Sheriff’s Office statement released Thursday on the mass shooting Friday night.
He died in the back of a car fleeing the scene, according to the release. It’s unclear whether he was shot in the garage or if he was shot inside the car.
An autopsy showed he died from the gunshot wound and it’s been ruled a homicide, Benton County Coroner Bill Leach said.
Contreras Chacon, who attended Eisenhower High School in Yakima, appears to have one previous conviction in 2020 for having a stolen gun and illegally possessing a gun.
This is the first new information released by investigators since Sunday about the shooting that rocked the sleepy, rural town of 3,400 about 15 miles west of the Tri-Cities.
According to court documents, someone opened fire into a crowded garage on Willard Avenue during a party with teens and young adults. Five others were wounded, including one who was hospitalized.
Sheriff’s officials said they are continuing to investigate, but have not said whether they have arrested a suspect or issued an arrest warrant. It’s also not clear if the shooting was a targeted attack or people were shot at random.
Two 15-year-old boys from Kennewick who were at the party were arrested after it was discovered they had stolen guns inside their backpacks at the party.
Neither teen appears to be connected to the shooting.
Court documents and one parent have said an “unknown individual” entered the party in the detached garage and began shooting multiple rounds.
One person said a number of shots were fired and then the gun was reloaded before another volley was fired.
Benton County deputies a couple miles away also heard the shots.
The gunfire sent the teens and young adults fleeing. Police later found 20 people hiding inside the home, while others had rushed friends to hospitals in Richland, Kennewick and Prosser.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Detective Jorge Garcia at 509-735-6555 ext. 7202 or jorge.garcia@co.benton.wa.us or Sgt. Horacio Gonzalez at 509-735-6555 ext. 7205 or horacio.gonzalez@co.benton.wa.us.
This story was originally published June 15, 2023 at 4:32 PM.