Gas station shooting allegedly motivated by theft
Moses Lake police responded to a shooting at a gas station at the corner of Pioneer Way and Nelson Road. For more photos, <a href="http://www.instantimagegallery.com/iig/c/193">click here</a>.
EPHRATA - A shooting at a Moses Lake gas station was reportedly spurred because the victim stole something from one of the men.
Freddie L. Gholston, 44, of Dol Polas, Calif., allegedly didn't tell Moses Lake police what the victim stole from him when he admitted to shooting the man outside of the gas station.
Prosecutors charged Gholston with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, drive-by shooting and possession of methamphetamine, according to court records. The alleged driver, James L. Boyd Jr., 23, of Fort Washington, Md., is charged with first-degree rendering criminal assistance and possession of methamphetamine.
A security tape from the gas station at the corner of Pioneer Way and Nelson Road reportedly showed Gholston and Boyd stop at a pump, according to a Moses Lake police report. Boyd allegedly bought an item at the store and returned to a dark SUV before the victim, Donald G. Smith, 40, arrived in a Dodge Intrepid.
Gholston reportedly exited the SUV and saw Smith exiting the store, according to the police report. He allegedly stepped behind the SUV and began shooting at Smith. Police reported Smith was hit in his left side. Officers found two 9mm shell casings at the scene.
Gholston allegedly got back into the passenger's side of the vehicle, and the two men fled the scene on Pioneer Way. A Moses Lake police community service officer reportedly saw the shooting and the men fleeing and followed them, according to the police report.
Moses Lake police, along with officers from the State Patrol and the Grant County Sheriff's Office stopped the Chevrolet Tahoe on state Route 17 near Road 3 Southeast, according to the police report. Officers discovered two guns, a Ruger 9mm and a Taurus Judge revolver, and nearly half a pound of methamphetamine in the SUV.
Gholston allegedly told officers Boyd didn't know about the shooting. Boyd reportedly did not speak to officers, according to the police report.
Officers reportedly found methamphetamine in the car Smith was driving along with marijuana and $700 in the victim's pocket.