In the winter of 2017, a dispute over a borrowed vehicle tragically cut short the life of 22-year-old Alex Song, a male resident of Lynnwood, Washington. On the evening of December 30th, Song, along with a couple of friends, went to the Newberry Square Apartments on Ash Way to retrieve a 2006 Honda Pilot that had not been returned by the individuals who had borrowed it.
What was intended to be a reclamation of property escalated into a fatal encounter that ended a young life.
In the apartment complex parking lot, a confrontation unfolded. As Song approached the Honda Pilot and knocked on a window, a single gunshot erupted from within the vehicle. The bullet, fired through the closed window by a passenger inside, struck Song in the upper chest. His exclamation of being hit was followed by his collapse at the scene, where he succumbed to the severe injury. The Snohomish County Medical Examiner's Office would later confirm that the cause of death was a gunshot wound, ruling the manner of death a homicide.
The immediate aftermath saw the suspects flee the scene, leaving investigators with the task of piecing together the events of that night. The borrowed Honda Pilot was discovered abandoned at a gas station in Everett the following day. The investigation quickly gained momentum as the female who had been driving the vehicle came forward and cooperated with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office. She identified the shooter as 19-year-old Pedro Luis Montero.
With this crucial information, detectives located and arrested Montero. During questioning, Montero provided conflicting stories and initially denied being in Snohomish County at the time of the shooting. However, the evidence against him, including witness testimony, was substantial. Investigators also discovered that shortly after the shooting, Montero had used his phone to search for news reports about the homicide. In April 2019, Pedro Montero pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm for his role in the death of Alex Song.
