Two men face charges for a drive-by shooting that targeted siblings of an individual convicted of a drug transaction gone wrong that claimed the life of Tyrone Sero nearly four years ago.
20-year-old Demondrae Jones and 19-year-old Rocco Anthony Fanara appeared in Pierce County Superior Court on Dec. 30 and pleaded not guilty to two charges of assault in the first degree and a drive-by shooting charge. The charges are related to a violent incident that took place in Gig Harbor on June 6, 2023.
According to charging documents, the victims — a man and a juvenile girl — were siblings of Kannon Anthony Stephens, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison for his involvement in Sero’s homicide. In 2021, the 19-year-old was killed in Port Orchard after meeting with Stephens to sell marijuana.
At around 8:30 p.m., the siblings arrived at Chipotle Grill on Point Forsdick Drive and observed a group of men inside the chain restaurant. The group disappeared by the time the siblings exited with their food, a probable cause statement said.
When they drove away, a sedan began following the siblings. After making a turn onto Hunt Street, two vehicles approached them at high speeds and fired shots at the siblings as they passed. No one was injured, but the victims’ vehicle sustained five bullet holes, according to the report.
A relative of the siblings told officers that they believed the incident to be an act of retaliation connected to an ongoing gang-related confict between the family and a group from Port Orchard. Law enforcement also established a connection between Sero and Fanara through posts on social media.
Charging documents said that upon reviewing Chipotle’s video surveillance footage, Fanara and Jones were identified as part of the group inside the restaurant when the siblings visited that night. The driver of one of the involved vehicles confirmed Jones was a passenger and had fired shots at the siblings’ vehicle.
One of the siblings also identified Fanara as one of the individuals involved in the shooting and ballistics ran on one of the 9 mm magazines found by police at the scene of the crime allegedly identified Fanara’s DNA.
Fanara and Jones were arrested on Dec. 27 during a traffic stop. During interviews with police, court documents said they initially denied involvement but allegedly admitted later that they had participated in the drive-by.
The suspects remain in custody at Pierce County Jail and are scheduled to go to trial in front of a jury on Feb. 19.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Gig Harbor drive-by shooting connected to Port Orchard murder