The Thurston County Coroner’s Office has reportedly confirmed that the man fatally shot by a Chehalis Tribal Police Officer at Lucky Eagle Casino on Sunday, Dec. 10 is Darren Evans, 33, of Yelm.
The Olympian first released the man’s name on Monday, Dec. 11. A Nisqually Valley News reporter was unable to independently confirm the information with the coroner’s office on Monday afternoon.
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office and the Chehalis Tribal Police had a warrant for Evans’ arrest and were searching for him in the Rochester area the evening of Dec. 10 when the shooting occurred.
Evans had been charged Dec. 4 in Pierce County Superior Court with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm for allegedly murdering 52-year-old Dion Bartro in Graham on Sept. 25, 2022.
Bartro died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to a news release from the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputies located Bartro’s body inside a home in the 25600 block of 61st Avenue Court East after neighbors reported hearing multiple gunshots and seeing a man chasing someone while shooting a gun, according to previous reporting. The suspected shooter fled into a wooded area and deputies were not able to find him.
Thurston County Sheriff’s Office deputies and Chehalis Tribal Police officers reportedly “had information the subject was inside the Lucky Eagle Casino” on Dec. 10, according to a news release from the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Chehalis Tribal Police officers attempted to contact Evans inside the casino, and “during contact, an officer with the Chehalis Tribal Police shot the subject,” according to the news release. Officers and deputies rendered aid to Evans, who was later declared dead.
The FBI and the Bureau of Indian Affairs were contacted because the incident involved Chehalis Tribal Police officers in their jurisdiction, according to the news release.
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident. The sheriff’s office asks any witnesses to contact it at detectives@co.thurston.wa.us.
