3rd shooter may face life in prison for Kennewick ambush killing of Tri-Cities teen
A Spokane man allegedly confessed to taking part in an ambush in Benton County that left a teen dead in late 2022.
Torrey Daniels, 22, made his first appearance in Benton County Superior Court this week nearly a year and a half after allegedly taking part in the murder of Jatzivy Sarabia, 18.
Prosecutors have charged Daniels with aggravated first-degree murder and he is being held in the Benton County jail on $1 million bail. His trial is scheduled for July 29.
If convicted of the charge, Daniels faces a mandatory life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole.
Daniels is the latest in a group of people to be charged with ambushing Sarabia and a group of teen girls on Oct. 15, 2022. They were on their way to a party in Finley.
He is believed to be a third shooter, and was spotted on video with the group at the 3-City Sports Bar and Grill. Daniels along with Isaiah S. R. Combs, 21, and Layshawne Bethea-Dickerson, 15, allegedly fired 70 times.
Investigators believe Daniels was one of a group of people who came from Spokane to the Tri-Cities. He was on a SnapChat video before the shooting rapping while holding a handgun.
After the shooting, he returned to Spokane. His girlfriend allegedly saw him become concerned in January 2023, according to court documents. It’s unclear what triggered the concern, but she overheard him telling his mother “I’m freaking out.”
His mother allegedly said he’d never been to the Tri-Cities, while Daniels was crying on the phone.
When his girlfriend pressed him about what happened, he allegedly confessed to being involved in the shooting.
Daniels allegedly said the people in the Jeep had shot at them first, and they returned fire, according to court documents. There has been no indication in court documents across the three cases that this was true.
“Since that first conversation, Daniels has expressed feeling guilty about the girl’s death, saying that he wished he never went to the Tri-Cities that night and that he was ‘in the wrong place, at the wrong time,’” according to court documents.
This information came to light after Spokane police responded to an alleged assault where Daniels attacked his girlfriend. He is currently charged in Spokane county for second-degree assault, fourth-degree assault and interfering with reporting domestic violence.
Kennewick shooting
Investigators believe the ambush stemmed from an argument that started in Spokane between Combs and the woman who owned the Jeep on Oct. 14, 2022. Sarabia had joined the woman along with several other friends on the trip.
During that argument Combs pointed a gun at the woman’s head. Bethea-Dickerson and all of the women in the Jeep during the shooting were present at the time.
The women left Spokane without Combs the next day. Combs and Bethea-Dickerson were picked up and brought back to the Tri-Cities.
Once back in the Tri-Cities, Combs and Bethea-Dickerson along with several other people, including Daniels, met with Sarabia and the other women outside of the 3-City Sports Bar.
Another argument broke out between Combs and the same woman outside of the bar.
They later all agreed to go to a party in Finley. Combs left the bar in a car with his girlfriend and others, and Bethea and Daniels left in another vehicle with people from Spokane.
Sarabia and the other women left in a Jeep.
As the Jeep was heading toward the party, the two vehicles pulled in front of them and the two men and the young teen allegedly opened fire.
Sarabia was sitting in the back seat when she was shot twice.
The Jeep’s driver was able to escape to her father’s home in downtown Kennewick.
The cars with the shooters returned to the 3-City Sports Bar and the occupants went back inside. Bethea-Dickerson allegedly bragged that he killed one of the women inside, according to court documents.
Combs is also facing aggravated first-degree murder. A trial has been scheduled for July 15.
Bethea-Dickerson was arrested in November 2022, and has been in Benton-Franklin Juvenile Detention facing a first-degree murder charge. Prosecutors have asked for the case to move into adult court. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, May 28.
