Homicide victim identified as Pasco teen

The victim of a fatal Pasco shooting near the cable bridge has been identified as George Garcia Thacker, a former student at New Horizons High School.

Thacker, 18, died shortly after police found him about 6:45 p.m. Wednesday in the street near the intersection of Ninth Avenue and River Street.

The Franklin County Coroner’s Office identified Thacker on Thursday. An autopsy is scheduled Oct. 10.

Investigators searched both sides of the Columbia River following the shooting, but they found no suspects.

Police had a report of a man with a dark complexion leaving the area, but it’s unknown if the person is connected to the shooting, authorities said.

Detectives followed up on leads Thursday, though only limited information on the shooting has been released because the investigation is ongoing, said police spokesman Capt. Ken Roske.

Thacker was a student in the Pasco School District starting in 2003, a district official confirmed. He attended Longfellow and Rowena Chess elementary schools, Stevens Middle School and New Horizons.

Some people who knew Thacker told the Herald he had been in trouble in the past, but was working to change his life. His family could not be reached for comment.

Almost three years ago to the day that Thacker was killed, his mother, Ruth Garcia, 36, died in a car crash on Highway 12 near Wallula.

Henry L. Thacker, the shooting victim’s uncle, who was driving the car, was sentenced to five years and eight months for causing the head-on crash.

The 2012 crash also killed a 37-year-old woman who was a passenger in Henry Thacker’s car, and injured three others, including a Richland woman.

Anyone with information on Thacker’s shooting is asked to call Pasco police at 509-545-3484 or 509-545-3510.

This story was originally published October 8, 2015 at 12:54 PM with the headline "Homicide victim identified as Pasco teen."