(WSB photo, October 3)

The King County Sheriff’s Office has announced that 17-year-old White Center bus-murder suspect Miguel Rivera Dominguez is in custody. Here’s the entirety of the announcement:

This morning, November 6, 2023, at 9:55 AM, homicide suspect Miguel Rivera Dominguez turned himself into the King County Sheriff’s Office without incident. Rivera Dominguez was named as the suspect in the shooting of 21-year-old Marcel Da’jon Wagner, who was fatally shot while riding on a King County Metro Transit Bus in White Center on October 3rd.

We want to thank our neighboring law enforcement agencies and community members for their assistance, tips, and support during this extensive investigation. Together, we are working to make our community safer.

According to a WSB tipster, he surrendered at the KCSO precinct in Burien, the city in which he had been residing. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Rivera Dominguez as an adult with first-degree murder last week, saying video from the bus suggested he shot and killed Wagner – who may have been asleep – without provocation or any sort of confrontation, without even saying a word. He’ll be held in lieu of $3 million bail.

(Also published on partner site White Center Now)

He’s still not in custody, but the teenage suspect in last month’s murder aboard a Metro bus in White Center is now charged – as an adult.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed charges of first-degree murder and second-degree unlawful gun possession against 17-year-old Miguel R. Rivera Dominguez in the death of 21-year-old Marcell D. Wagner. And with that, an “active warrant” is out for Rivera Dominguez’s arrest, which would put him in jail with bail set at $3 million. The charging documents tell the story of what police and prosecutors believe happened – and for those who assumed there must have been some sort of dispute or confrontation between the two, apparently not: “Without any provocation, and in fact without having ever interacted with the victim at all, the defendant fired five rounds into the victim’s head and neck at point blank range. The defendant then fired two more shots through the door of the bus and fled to a location where he could change his clothing before returning home again.”

Investigators eventually identified Rivera Dominguez by tracing back to the Burien neighborhood where he and a friend had gotten on that bus. They learned he had once been reported as a runaway from his home there, and that he had been suspended from Highline High School for a fight during the last school year. Watching the bus’s on-board video of the shooting, detectives noted that the suspect’s friend appeared as shocked as the bus’s other 15 passengers when he pulled a gun and opened fire on the victim, who was described as possibly sleeping. The court documents say detectives eventually talked to the friend and he also told them he had no idea Rivera Dominguez was going to shoot someone, and that neither of them knew the victim, who had boarded the bus before they did, and was seated in the rear, where they also sat. Deputies found six casings on the bus and one outside. Rivera Dominguez was last seen at the Boys and Girls Club in Greenbridge shortly after the shooting, where he changed his clothes. If you have any information on Rivera Dominguez’s whereabouts, call 911.

9:48 AM: Two weeks after a 21-year-old man was shot and killed on a Metro bus at 15th/Roxbury, the King County Sheriff’s Office has identified a 17-year-old suspect and is releasing photos, asking for your help in finding him:

King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) Major Crimes Detectives are seeking the community’s help in locating the suspect of a homicide in White Center on October 3rd.

17-year-old Miguel Rivera Dominguez (pictured) has been identified as the suspect who fatally shot Marcel Da’jon Wagner, 21, on a Metro Bus earlier this month.

Rivera Dominguez has strong ties to the Burien area and is known to use public transportation or seek rides from others. It’s likely he will be wearing a mask to conceal his face while in public. Rivera Dominguez is believed to be armed and extremely dangerous.

Anyone with information on the suspect’s whereabouts can submit a tip by calling (206) 263-2090, via email at mcutips@kingcounty.gov, or anonymously via the P3Tips app. If located, call 911 immediately.

We asked KCSO for any additional descriptive information. They tell us he is 6′ tall, 170 pounds.

3:53 PM: A reader just forwarded us an alert sent to the South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) community by campus security:

… we are sending this alert because the suspect does have ties to our main campus in West Seattle and could show up here.

There is no known immediate threat to our college or campus at this time. If that changes, we will send emergency alert messaging. Campus security is doing extra patrols to keep an eye out for the suspect and is in contact with authorities investigating the case.

We asked SSC for any further information about the suspect’s “ties”; they had none to provide.

7:09 PM: Commenters noted that it appears Rivera Dominguez is or was a student at Burien’s Highline High School. One reader has since forwarded us a community message from HHS principal Clint Sallee saying he is a former student: “Miguel left HHS in December of 2022 and has not attended our school since that time. Some of our students know Miguel. Hearing this information about a former classmate or friend may impact them. Please contact the counselor if you believe your student needs support.”

(WSB photo, Tuesday)

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to release the name of the man shot and killed on a Metro bus at 15th/Roxbury on Tuesday. But there was a quick update at tonight’s meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council, the community coalition for White Center and vicinity. Major Mark Konoske from the King County Sheriff’s Office Southwest Precinct – which serves White Center and Burien, among other areas – said he couldn’t be specific, but “There was a variety of evidence available that we’re following up on … I’m optimistic we’ll end up catching some people … there are leads we’re following up on.” The shooting happened just after 5 pm Tuesday (here’s our original report) and the victim, reported to have been shot at least twice, was declared dead at the scene. Meantime, Metro general manager Michelle Allison said online that “we have added a security presence on the H Line Wednesday and will maintain that presence into the foreseeable future,” adding that “as part of the approved budget, Metro continues to hire and expand the number of transit security officers (TSOs) that patrol our buses and transit centers.”