In the late hours of May 13, 2020, the life of 42-year-old Lynnette Lozano Toaetolu, a mother of two, was brought to a violent end in Reno, Nevada. Residing at the La Quinta Inn on Market Street with her two young sons, ages five and seven, the evening took a horrific turn when multiple gunshots echoed through the motel at approximately 10:30 PM. When Reno Police Department officers arrived, they discovered the female victim inside her room, having been fatally shot while she was reading a
book. The investigation would later reveal that an astonishing 23 shots had been fired within the confines of the small room.
The immediate aftermath of the shooting was chaotic, but the bravery of her children was remarkable. Her five-year-old son later told detectives that he "laid there and pretended to be dead so he wouldn't do nothing to me." His older brother, seven at the time, received a small burn on his back from a hot, ejected shell casing during the barrage of gunfire. A good Samaritan staying in an adjacent room heard the commotion and rushed to comfort the two boys until law enforcement and paramedics arrived at the scene. The investigation swiftly turned into a homicide case, with authorities focusing on finding the person responsible for the brutal act.
The primary suspect was quickly identified as Lamar Andre Adams, then 49, the victim's boyfriend who had been living with her. In the wake of the murder, Adams fled the scene, driving to Sacramento, California, where he hid the AR-style pistol used in the shooting. He then returned to the Reno area in a stolen vehicle, where he was located and apprehended by police. During questioning, Adams confessed to shooting Toaetolu multiple times.
In March 2022, Lamar Adams pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon and one count of child endangerment with the use of a deadly weapon. Two months later, a judge sentenced him to life in prison. He will be eligible for parole only after serving nearly 33 years behind bars for the murder and the child endangerment charge. Adams is currently serving his sentence at High Desert State Prison in Nevada.
