Authorities Charge Man Suspected Of Killing Three Pierce County Men

King County authorities charged a man with three counts of homicide today in connection with the killing of three Pierce County men last year, including a man from University Place.

Alberto Avila-Cardenas of Lakewood, 36, is in the Federal Detention Center in SeaTac, where he is being held after being indicted by a federal grand jury on weapon charges unrelated to the homicides.

The King County Sheriff's Office says authorities learned of Avila-Cardenas shortly after Christian Alberto Rangel, 19, of University Place; Jesus Avila-Bejar, 25, of Lakewood; and Yazmani Quezada-Ortiz, 26, of Tacoma, went missing Dec. 12. Two days later, their vehicle was found abandon at an apartment complex.

Almost three months later, an employee of Rainier Nursery, in unincorporated King County near Kent, discovered two of the bodies. Investigators discovered the third body later at the scene.  It appeared the three had been dead for quite some time.

Lakewood Police interviewed Avila-Cardenas and obtained a search warrant for his vehicle and home.

"During a search of the house, they found a 9-mm, semi-automatic (gun) hidden in the rafters of the garage," according to the King County Sheriff's Office.

"DNA evidence found on the gun seized during the search was linked to one of the victims," according to the department. "In addition, fired cartridge cases from that gun were found at the murder scene."

Avila-Cardenas was charged with unlawful possession of a handgun in Pierce County, but those charges were dropped in February when he was indicted by the federal grand jury on the unrelated weapon charges.

King County Sheriff's Sgt. John Urquhart said authorities are still investigating the relationship between the three men and Avila-Cardenas.

"This is not random," Urquhart said. "He definitely knew them."

The investigation is ongoing.