Assault charge for man who allegedly fired shots in trailer park

MOSES LAKE — A man who is a convicted felon in El Salvador is facing a serious assault charge in connection with a Friday night non-injury shooting in Moses Lake.

Grant County prosecutors charged Elsias Ramirez, 39, of Moses Lake, in Grant County Superior Court with second-degree assault (deadly weapon) and had his bail set at $15,000.

The charges relate to a Friday night shots fired call at a trailer park in the 1800 block of West Broadway Avenue in Moses Lake. The reporting party advised someone, alleged to be Ramirez, had fired shots at her brother. Police arrived at the trailer park and contacted a male who claimed he was in a fight with Ramirez and he fired three rounds into the ground near his feet, according to court documents.

The victim said he went to a relative’s residence at the trailer park that night and went to another family member’s trailer later in the evening. Ramirez was reportedly at the other trailer and began insulting the victim when he arrived.

The victim says Ramirez wanted to fight him so he, the victim, went outside and attempted to leave. Ramirez allegedly stopped the victim by kicking and punching him, after which the two men started exchanging punches. The fight was broken up and the victim says he went behind his family member’s trailer to urinate when Ramirez came running at him and told him to stop.

Ramirez was allegedly holding a gun and pointed the weapon at the victim’s head. Ramirez allegedly fired one shot near the victim’s legs and later fired two additional rounds into the ground near the victim’s feet. MLPD officers searched the area and located two shells casings and two bullets on the ground.

Ramirez, who has a felony conviction in El Salvador and is not a U.S. citizen, fled the scene after the incident and was later located in a shed behind a residence in the 1700 block of Bemis Street. Police were not able to locate the gun Ramirez allegedly used and he denied ever having a firearm.

“Elsias had a cut above his left eye with recently dried blood in the eyebrow area, which proves he was in a physical fight,” wrote an MLPD officer. “(A detective) took a recorded statement from Elsias who stated he got into a fight with (the victim,) but (the victim) was the aggressor.”

Ramirez went on to claim that a friend of the victim fired the gun at him as he was fighting with the victim.