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An 18-year-old Centralia man accused of shooting an unoccupied vehicle at least six times on Feb. 1 following a dispute with the vehicle’s owner has been arrested on felony charges.
Bryan L. Garduno was booked into the Lewis County Jail at approximately 5:11 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 4, and was charged Wednesday, Feb. 5, with one count each of second-degree malicious mischief and unlawful possession of a firearm. Each charge is a class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Bail is set at $25,000.
“The nature of the allegations here, it’s there by the grace of God that we’re not facing a charge of first-degree, or murder,” Lewis County Superior Court Judge Paul Strophy said during Garduno’s preliminary hearing on Wednesday.
Garduno is accused of going to a residence on View Avenue in Centralia at approximately 1:30 a.m. the morning of Feb. 1 and shooting a vehicle in the residence’s driveway at least six times, according to charging documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court.
“I don’t read any allegations that anyone was nearby (during the alleged shooting),” defense attorney Rachael Tiller said of Garduno’s case during his preliminary hearing on Wednesday.
Strophy acknowledged that the allegations don’t indicate whether Garundo knew no one was in or near the vehicle during the alleged shooting, and said the alleged act of discharging a firearm “can have life-altering consequences.”
The vehicle’s owner, who reported the incident to the Centralia Police Department on Feb. 4, “advised that he was at school that day and his girlfriend pointed out bullet holes in the trunk of his car,” according to court documents. “He said upon further inspection he found multiple gunshots in the car.”
An officer observed four visible bullet holes in the hood of the vehicle and two in the rear of the vehicle, according to court documents. The officer recovered one bullet and bullet fragments from the vehicle. Four 9mm shell casings were also located on the property.
“The petitioning of (the victim’s) vehicle that night indicated that the person shooting his vehicle was on foot and standing on the property,” according to court documents.
The victim reported that his cousin is dating Garduno and that Garduno had driven his girlfriend to the View Avenue residence to confront the victim’s uncle on Jan. 31, according to court documents. The victim also reported that “there had been a prior incident between Garduno and himself several years prior, and that Garduno had been posting pictures of him with a firearm on Snapchat,” according to court documents.
Officers reportedly determined the time of the shooting by going back through police reports and finding that someone on Lum Road, a few blocks away from the View Avenue residence, reported hearing gunshots at about 1:30 a.m. on Feb. 1.
Centralia officers utilized the Flock safety camera system to locate the silver Acura that Garduno drove to the victim’s residence on Jan. 31, according to court documents. Cameras also reportedly caught footage of the vehicle driving near the victim’s residence within minutes of the shooting complaint.
When questioned by officers, Garduno reportedly “stated he had been told what he was being accused of and denied any involvement,” according to court documents. He additionally denied that he had firearms at his residence and declined officers’ request to search for a firearm.
Officers returned with a search warrant for Garduno’s vehicle and his residence. During the search, they reportedly found a Glock 19 pistol under a dresser in Garduno’s bedroom with his identification on top of it, and found a fully loaded magazine in a safe in the closet.
“When cleaning the firearm, it was noted there was gunpowder inside of it,” according to court documents.
Garduno’s criminal history prohibits him from owning or possessing firearms, according to court documents.
His arraignment hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 13.
