A Federal Way man who killed a 17-year-old while working as a security officer at a marijuana dispensary in Renton has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.

According to court documents, on Nov. 22, Michael Leemoui, 44, who last lived in Federal Way, pleaded down his charge of second-degree murder to first-degree manslaughter after his trial for second-degree murder ended in a hung jury on July 18.

Leemoui’s trial stemmed from the March 1, 2021, killing of 17-year-old Antonio Garcia-Fonseca in Renton while Leemoui worked as a security guard at Buddy’s Cannabis in Renton. Leemoui was also charged with the count of unlawful possession of a firearm in the second degree, which he was found guilty of by the jury in July.

According to court documents, the state recommended that as a level 2 offender, Leemoui serve a prison sentence of nine years, six months on count one of manslaughter in the first degree and eight months on count two of possession of a firearm in the second degree concurrently. The maximum sentence for manslaughter in the first degree is life. Additionally, he is to pay restitution for an amount to be determined, and he is to have no contact with the family of Fonseca-Garcia for life.

According to court documents, in accordance with state law, Leemoui will need to be in community custody for 36 months following his release. Additionally, he is subject to the mandatory consequences of DNA testing, the revocation of the right to possess a firearm and the revocation of his driver’s license.

Leemoui’s sentencing date is scheduled for Jan. 3.

“On March 1, 2021, I recklessly caused the death of Antonio Fonseca-Garcia, a human being, in Renton, King County, Washington,” Leemoui said in court documents.

Details of the case

According to charging documents, on March 1, 2021, while working security for Buddy’s Cannabis in Renton, Leemoui shot and killed 17-year-old Antonio Garcia-Fonseca after chasing a group of teens who robbed a man who had visited the shop.

According to charging documents, the shooting occurred after a male who had just visited Buddy’s Cannabis was walking under the I-405 bridge at about 7:30 p.m. A group of four teenagers robbed the male at gunpoint for various items, including his mobile phone. Following the robbery, the teenagers fled on foot.

Leemoui was in the parking lot of Buddy’s Cannabis on break while working security when the male who was robbed came and yelled for help. The male who was robbed then pointed at a group of teenagers running westbound away from the shop and said they had robbed him. The male who was robbed then went inside the shop and called 911 at about 7:31 p.m.

A witness then approached Leemoui and asked him if he needed help, to which Leemoui asked him, “Are you strapped?” The witness then entered Leemoui’s vehicle while Leemoui put on a ballistic vest.

Leemoui chased the teenagers in his vehicle and apprehended two of them in a nearby alleyway between Factory Avenue North and Meadow Avenue North in Renton. According to the witness, Leemoui was in the center of the road in his vehicle on North 4th Street, with his driver’s side window facing the alleyway. Leemoui then pointed his Glock pistol at the two teenagers in the alley running away from him.

The witness said that Leemoui yelled, “Don’t run, or I’ll shoot.” The witness said he then heard two gunshots and saw one of the teens lying in the street, according to charging documents.

The witness said he thought they were going to stop and check on the person who was shot, but they instead drove away, and Leemoui said, “This didn’t happen.” They drove back to Buddy’s Cannabis, and when they arrived, Leemoui said, “I forgot about the bullet.” Leemoui then asked the witness if they could drive away in his car, to which the witness refused and left, and Leemoui then left.

At 7:39 p.m., a witness called 911 and said they heard gunshots and saw a body next to a dumpster in the alley between Factory Avenue North and Meadow Avenue North. Officers responded and found Garcia-Fonseca deceased with a gunshot wound to the head. They also located .40mm bullet casings on 4th Street, facing the alleyway. On Garcia-Fonseca’s person, they found the mobile phone belonging to the robbed man.

At 11:22 p.m., Leemoui returned to Buddy’s Cannabis. He said he had driven off with a customer to find the robbers, but after not seeing anyone, he returned to Buddy’s Cannabis. Leemoui said he then drove back to 4th Street by himself, but when he saw police cars, he drove back to Buddy’s Cannabis.

The witness returned to the scene and confirmed that Leemoui was the one he had seen shoot Garcia-Fonseca. Leemoui was then taken into custody and said he wished to have an attorney before saying anything more.

According to the charging documents, investigators obtained security footage from Buddy’s Cannabis that did not corroborate Leemoui’s statements to officers.

Investigators then obtained a search warrant for Leemoui’s sedan and found a Glock .40 mm pistol in his glove box. A test fire was conducted on the recovered Glock handgun. A comparison was conducted by NIBN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network) from that test fire to the casings recovered at the homicide scene. According to the charging documents, NIBN provided a preliminary match between the two.