Tacoma teenager may have been fatally shot during proposed gun trade, charges say

A 17-year-old teenager has been charged for a fatal shooting in Tacoma that may have stemmed from a gun trade.

Prosecutors charged Ziair Gilbert with first-degree murder, second-degree murder and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm for the Sept. 14, 2024 homicide, court records show. The News Tribune is naming Gilbert because he will be tried as an adult due to the severity of the charges.

A plea of not guilty was entered on Gilbert’s behalf during his arraignment Thursday. Pierce County Superior Court Judge Joseph Evans set his bail at $1 million, records show.

15-year-old Moses Tillman of Tacoma was fatally shot during the proposed gun exchange. He died from a gunshot wound to the torso, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Officers were dispatched at 3:57 a.m. to the 1300 block of East 67th Street for a shooting. Tillman was found unresponsive against a mailbox and fence after suffering two gunshot wounds, according charging documents.

After Tacoma Fire personnel began CPR, they were not able to revive him and Tillman was pronounced dead at the scene, documents show.

A witness who lived nearby said he heard gunshots, but only saw Tillman lying on the ground. Another witness reported to police that she heard someone yelling “run” twice before six to eight gunshots were fired.

Detectives learned from Tillman’s cousin, who was with the victim prior and during the shooting, that they were meeting with Gilbert for a gun exchange, prosecutors wrote. The cousin said one of the suspects allegedly grabbed the gun from under Tillman’s arm and took it in a “tug of war” situation. Tillman was going to trade his gun and $300 for another one, but then he was shot during the interaction.

Through the expended 9mm shell casings from the scene, detectives were advised on Jan. 31 that one of the DNA profiles was possibly associated with Gilbert, prosecutors wrote.

Gilbert was arrested on Wednesday on a bench warrant, court records show.