Man convicted of 2023 fatal shooting at Auburn intersection
Published 9:20 am Friday, May 8, 2026
A 19-year-old Auburn man was found guilty of first-degree murder for a 2023 incident in which he shot another man at an Auburn Way intersection.
On April 24, a King County Superior Court jury found Jesus Castaneda-Peraza guilty of first-degree murder and first-degree assault, and he additionally pleaded guilty to first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Castaneda-Peraza’s charges stem from a May 30, 2023, incident when Castaneda-Peraza was 16 years old, in which he fatally shot Fabian Gonzalez, 20, while Gonzalez sat in the passenger seat of a car driven by Castaneda-Peraza’s girlfriend.
Castaneda-Peraza was initially only charged with first-degree murder and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, but in late March, the prosecutor’s office added the charge of first-degree assault. Documents state that prosecutors charged Castaneda-Peraza with first-degree assault because of his intent to assault his girlfriend during the incident in which he shot Gonzalez.
According to the charging documents, for the crimes of first-degree murder and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, Castaneda-Peraza faced a minimum 311 months — nearly 26 years — and a maximum 407 months — nearly 34 years — in prison. Court documents do not specify what Castaneda-Peraza’s sentencing range is now that he was additionally convicted of first-degree assault.
Castaneda-Peraza’s sentencing hearing is set for June 5 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center.
Details of the case
According to court documents, Castaneda-Peraza shot Gonzalez, his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend, three times at the intersection of Cross Street Southeast and Auburn Way South before fleeing with his 17-year-old girlfriend to Portland, Oregon.
Documents state that Castaneda-Peraza pursued Gonzalez’s vehicle after tracking his girlfriend’s location and realizing she was spending time with another person.
Waiting in a parking lot near Auburn Way South for her vehicle to pass, he pulled alongside her vehicle, exited, and then fired three shots through the passenger’s side window at “near point-blank range.” Castaneda-Peraza then told his girlfriend to get into his vehicle before he drove them to Oregon.
The Auburn Police Department was dispatched to the scene at approximately 9:32 a.m. after receiving reports of a shooting with the suspect fleeing southbound on Auburn Way South in a Chrysler.
First responders attempted to perform medical intervention on Gonzalez at the scene. However, the Valley Regional Fire Authority pronounced him dead at 9:54 a.m.
In text messages between Castaneda-Peraza and his family, he explained that he shot and killed his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend and said “goodbye,” and that “he was not going to be able to see them for a while,” according to documents.
The Gresham Police Department arrested Castaneda-Peraza the following morning on May 31, 2023, after locating both him and his girlfriend in a vehicle outside of Portland’s city limits.
The Auburn Police Department then authorized temporary felony arrest warrants for Castaneda-Peraza and his girlfriend to extradite them both back to Washington.
Documents state that six months earlier, in December 2022, the King County Superior Court convicted Castaneda-Peraza of two counts of robbery in the second degree and unlawful possession of firearms in the second degree. Castaneda-Peraza pleaded guilty as a juvenile to the charges and was sentenced to 60 days in detention.
