Court records show one suspect has previous convictions for drive-by shootings, gun possession and work-related escapes.
PARKLAND, Wash. — A suspect arrested in the robbery and shooting death of 17-year-old Braylon Diaz of Parkland previously pleaded guilty to a 2021 drive-by shooting charge, court documents show.
Two people arrested in connection with Diaz shooting on Monday.
Court records show the male suspect has prior felony convictions in Pierce County involving drive-by shootings, assaults, possession of firearms, drugs and escape.
In a 2019 case, prosecutors said a sedan chased a Honda Accord in Tacoma before someone inside the sedan fired several shots into the passenger side of the Honda. The male suspect later pleaded guilty in 2021 to second-degree assault and drive-by shooting, court records show.
He was sentenced to 60 months in prison. Two years later, he was transferred from prison to a work-release program, from which he escaped a month later, court documents show.
In 2023, he was convicted of escape and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
In that case, deputies said they found a stolen Glock 23 .40 caliber handgun in the vehicle he was riding in.
this fatal shooting The incident occurred at about 7:13 pm on May 24 in the 10200 block of Sheridan Avenue South. Deputies were called to the area after reports of a serious injury.
Investigators said Braylon was walking with his girlfriend, Katelyn Zuniga, 16, when a car drove up, surprising them.
Caitlin told KING 5 the people in the car were interested in Braylen’s necklace. She said Braylon gave up voluntarily before being shot.
She said she saw four people in a red four-door car she didn’t recognize. Investigators said the attack appeared to be random.
“This was a real victim tonight,” Sheriff’s spokesperson Carly Cappetto said previously.
Medical emergency personnel performed CPR, but Braylon died at the scene.
On May 28, the Sheriff’s Office announced that investigators found a car believed to be involved in the robbery and shooting on Federal Way.
“This discovery advances our efforts to identify the suspect,” Cappetto said previously.
The Sheriff’s Office is warning people not to approach vehicles they don’t recognize.
On May 27, Braylen’s father, Brock, spoke to KING 5 at a memorial event for his son.
“I don’t need my parents, no one should have to go through something like this,” he said. “Not even the way it happened. I mean, it was horrible. No one should have to go through something like that. It should have been me first. I was supposed to be old and he took care of me and he took care of me and then he put me on the ground. Not like that.”
Bullock said he spoke with Braylon less than an hour before the shooting.
“I didn’t even get a chance to touch him or look at him,” Bullock said. “The next time I saw him, he was in a bag. It was very difficult for all of us to do that. We couldn’t even touch him.”
Bullock said about 20 to 40 minutes later, Caitlin called him and told him what happened. He described it as “the worst phone call of my life.”
“He was the sweetest soul,” Caitlin told KING 5.
Braylon is a junior at Washington High School. People close to him say he was an enthusiastic student who loved football and planned to join the military after graduation.
“He protected me in those last seconds… He always cared about me,” Caitlin said.
