On the morning of September 3, 2023, 19-year-old Keylen Lynell Collins of Puyallup, Washington, was found dead on a neighborhood basketball court in the Lipoma Firs area of South Hill. The Pierce County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide, listing multiple gunshot wounds as the cause. The incident occurred about 3:21 a.m. after a late-night party reportedly escalated into an argument and gunfire; deputies arriving at the scene found Collins alone after other partygoers had fled.

Investigators say the dispute centered on marijuana in Collins’s backpack. Witnesses reported that 18-year-old Antonio Hartman threatened to rob Collins, fired a gun into the air, and then shot him. Hartman was later stopped on September 18 while driving a stolen car with stolen plates; deputies recovered two pistols in the vehicle, one with an extended magazine. He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and related firearm charges and received a sentence of more than 25 years. Fourteen victim-impact statements described Collins as a beloved young man with a bright future; his girlfriend was noted as having been undergoing chemotherapy at the time.

Does anyone have information about the events that night or knew Collins and can help fill in gaps about what happened?