The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said it was “urgently searching” for a suspect in an early Friday shooting in the Frederickson area that left a woman in critical condition.
Detectives are seeking a man they’ve identified as 39-year-old Tony French, who they believe shot his ex-girlfriend in front of her home. He fled in a black 2005 Toyota Corolla with Oregon license plate 955HEE and is considered armed and extremely dangerous, according to the sheriff’s department.
The woman was shot multiple times but is expected to survive, said Pierce County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Ed Troyer. Deputies believe the woman is French’s ex-girlfriend and the two have been in a custody dispute over their 18-month-old child. The child was is safe, according to the Sheriff’s Department. Two teenage children were inside the woman’s home, The News Tribune reported. Troyer said the teenagers are not French’s children.
The identity of the victim has not been released. Pierce County Superior Court records show French and a woman had been attempting to cobble together a parenting plan and child support schedule since January 2018. There is a history of domestic violence, Troyer told The News Tribune.
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At 7:24 a.m. Friday, witnesses reported seeing a man fire about 10 shots out of a dark colored sedan at a woman in the 16000 block of 69th Avenue Court East, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department. Deputies found the victim lying in the road.
Deputies believe French has ties to Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, but do not know the exact nature of those ties, Troyer said.
This is a developing story. Watch for updates.