Juan Carlos Zavala was 32 when he was shot in the early hours of June 21, 2022, while working on his car in the parking lot of the Rocky Mart convenience store on West Nob Hill Boulevard in Yakima, Washington. Two people assisting him with a tire were also wounded; Zavala was critically injured and died during surgery at a local hospital. Investigators described the shooting as gang-related and said Zavala was a well known violent Yakima gang member.

A break in the investigation came in February 2023 when the U.S. Marshals Violent Offender Task Force and local authorities arrested 20-year-old Joseph Pelayo at a home in Union Gap; he was booked on charges of murder and assault. Fabian Daniel Lopez was identified as a co-defendant. Court records show both men later entered pleas and were sentenced; Zavala’s sister Regina Robles spoke in court about the loss and the impact on his child.

If anyone has information about the shooting or knew Juan Zavala, please share what you know.