On the evening of March 30, 2015, LisaMarie Eason, a 46-year-old white female, was working her shift as a taxi driver in Mount Vernon, Washington. A caring and generous single mother of two, she was relatively new to the job. Her life was cut short in what her family described as a senseless act of violence. Around 9:41 p.m., police responded to a report of a weapons offense and discovered Eason's burgundy Mert's Taxi van, which had rolled into some shrubs near Montgomery Street.
The vehicle was still running, and inside, Eason was found deceased with an apparent gunshot wound to her head.
Witnesses in the area reported hearing a sound consistent with a gunshot and saw a man fleeing from the taxi. The man was described as having dark skin, long black hair, and a beard, wearing a black jacket and jeans, and carrying a backpack. He was seen running west from the scene. Shortly after the shooting, a man matching this description carjacked a young woman at gunpoint near the riverfront area of Mount Vernon, stealing her black Toyota Camry.
Investigators quickly learned that Eason's last fare was a passenger she had picked up at the Swinomish Casino. Security footage from the casino showed a man matching the suspect's description getting into her taxi. The man had given his name, Solomona Fatu Luteru, to casino security when his backpack was checked. This crucial piece of evidence, along with the carjacking victim later identifying Luteru in a photo lineup, solidified him as the primary suspect.
The stolen Camry was tracked through two cell phones that had been left inside. By the early morning of March 31, the phones pinged at a gas station in Lakewood, about 100 miles away. Lakewood police located the vehicle and arrested Luteru. Upon his arrest, he reportedly told officers he would need a lawyer because he was in a lot of trouble. Luteru was subsequently charged with murder and robbery in connection with the death of LisaMarie Eason. There was no known connection between Eason and her killer.
