In the early morning hours of Sunday, September 14, 2025, the life of 24-year-old Jason Pascual of Rochester, Washington, was tragically cut short. Emergency services were dispatched to a home on 201st Avenue Southwest in the Grand Mound area, just outside of Centralia, shortly before 7 a.m. following a frantic 911 call from his mother reporting that her son had been shot in the stomach.
Deputies from the Thurston County Sheriff's Office arrived within minutes to find Jason suffering from a single gunshot wound to his abdomen.
Despite immediate life-saving efforts administered by the first responding deputy and subsequent medical aid from West Thurston Fire crews, Jason Pascual succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene at 7:27 a.m. The home was secured by law enforcement, and an intensive investigation into the circumstances of the shooting began, with assistance from the Washington State Patrol's Crime Scene Response Team. Detectives worked throughout the day, executing multiple search warrants, conducting interviews with family members present in the house, and collecting evidence to piece together the events that led to the fatal shooting.
Later that same day, the investigation led to the arrest of a family member in connection with the death. Jason's younger brother, 19-year-old Marc Anthony Pascual, was taken into custody and booked into the Thurston County Jail on suspicion of first-degree manslaughter. Investigators discovered inconsistencies in his initial statements and found physical evidence, including a shell casing and an empty gun case in the room where he was sleeping. Further examination revealed a bullet hole in the wall with a trajectory that aligned with where Jason was shot.
Marc Anthony Pascual made his preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court, where bail was set at $500,000. The court found probable cause for the charge of first-degree manslaughter with a domestic violence enhancement. The tragic incident has left a family grieving an immense loss while another member faces serious criminal charges.
