Tyrone Sero, a 19-year-old White man from Port Orchard, Washington, was known to his loved ones as "TJ." He was a graduate of South Kitsap High School who was remembered for his outgoing, bubbly and loyal personality. His life was cut short in a violent kidnapping and murder that began with a plan to sell marijuana.
In the early hours of October 20, 2021, Sero used Snapchat to arrange a meeting with Kannon Stephens.
Just after midnight, surveillance cameras in a South Kitsap parking lot recorded Sero getting into the passenger seat of a silver Toyota 4-Runner. He was immediately pulled into the back of the SUV, where a struggle began. Stephens, who had been hiding in the rear of the vehicle, shot Sero in the back of the head, killing him almost instantly.
After the shooting, Stephens and his two accomplices, Karlen Talent and Eli Gregory, drove to an undeveloped property in Mason County. There, they dismembered Sero’s body and burned his remains for several hours to destroy evidence. They later collected what was left, placed the remains into bags, and discarded some of them in a nearby river.
When Sero’s family reported him missing, the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office launched an investigation. Detectives reviewed the surveillance footage and determined Sero had been taken by force. The case saw a breakthrough when Kannon Stephens, 19, turned himself in and confessed to his role as the shooter. Karlen Talent, 20, and Eli Gregory, 18, were also taken into custody. All three were initially charged with first-degree murder.
In 2023, all three men accepted plea agreements, pleading guilty to a range of reduced charges that included second-degree manslaughter and first-degree robbery. Kannon Stephens was sentenced to 207 months, more than 17 years in prison. For their roles in the crime, Karlen Talent and Eli Gregory were each sentenced to 93 months, over seven years in prison. The final sentencing in the case occurred in October 2023.
