A Kent man pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter after initially being charged with first-degree murder when a new witness was discovered who said the incident occurred while the victim and defendant were playing with a gun.

On Aug. 14, Eddie Contreras, 29, of Kent, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter after a plea agreement amended his charge from first-degree murder. This charge stems from a Feb. 22, 2022, incident where prosecutors allege that Contreras shot and killed Luis Cerda before Cerda’s body was found in his mother’s car at SE 312th Way in Auburn.

According to court documents, Contreras said this incident occurred accidentally after he had been drinking alcohol.

“I recklessly caused the death of Luis Cerda, a human being, who died on or about Feb. 22, 2022, after I accidentally shot him after we had both been drinking alcohol,” Contreras said.

Court documents further clarify that Contreras’ charge was amended following the discovery of new information and pursuant to plea negotiations with the input of the victims. According to documents, a new witness was discovered who was in the backseat at the time of the shooting, who was vetted by Auburn police detectives and whose observations were consistent with case facts.

“Said witness states that the victim, Mr. Cerda, was shot by the defendant, Mr. Contreras, while Cerda and Contreras were playing with Mr. Cerda’s handgun. Said witness reports that all three, the witness, Mr. Cerda and Mr. Contreras had been drinking alcohol prior to the shooting,” documents state. “Said witness also reports rather than calling for aid or the police, the defendant, Mr. Contreras, took to steps to distance himself from Mr. Cerda’s body and cover up his accidental killing of Mr. Cerda.”

According to documents, Contreras has a previous adult felony charge of unlawful possession of a firearm, seven adult misdemeanors and one violent juvenile felony. The adult felony, juvenile felony and the concurrent charge of unlawful possession of a firearm from the same incident as the manslaughter charge give him an offender score of four.

With an offender score of four, Contreras’ sentencing range for the crime of manslaughter is between 111 and 147 months — between a little over nine years and a little over 12 years. The prosecutor on the case recommended the mid-range sentence of 129 months — a little under 11 years.

Details of the incident

Auburn police arrested Contreras on Feb. 28, 2023, in Kent on an unrelated felony harassment charge at his ex-girlfriend’s home when he threatened to shoot up the home, as well as a $75,000 warrant for failure to appear for arraignment on a felony violation of a court order, according to charging papers.

“The defendant (Contreras) shot an unarmed man, a man who believed the defendant to be his friend, in the head while the pair were out for the evening,” according to Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Donald Raz. “The defendant then abandoned the victim’s body and the victim’s car on a secluded road and fled the scene.”

Cerda’s body was found Feb. 22, 2022, in his mother’s black Hyundai Elantra on SE 312th Way in Auburn. The blood stain patterns on Cerda’s body and his positioning in the front passenger seat of the car indicated that his body had been positioned by someone else in the seat, according to charging documents. There was a handgun found under the seat where Cerda was seated, but it had no magazine in it.

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office later determined that Cerda had been killed by a gunshot wound to his head and ruled his death a homicide.

Auburn police contacted Cerda’s family and found out they had not seen him since the evening before the discovery of his body. Cerda’s girlfriend told detectives that she had received a text that he was with Contreras, known by the street name of “Smooth,” according to charging papers.

The girlfriend said Cerda and Contreras had fought recently and that Contreras wanted Cerda “to join a gang and bring a gun.”

Detectives used a Facebook profile picture of Contreras to compare him to booking photos and identify him. Police used video surveillance from apartment complexes on Southeast 312th Street that reportedly showed Contreras walking near where Cerda’s vehicle was found.

Detectives determined from Cerda’s cellphone that he and Contreras began communicating with each other in December 2021. Text messages and phone calls reportedly were exchanged the night before Cerda’s body was found about the two meeting up.

By tracking cellphone data from the phones of the two men, police determined they were in the Panther Lake area of Kent around midnight. At about 12:30 a.m. they traveled to Covington and were in that area for a couple of hours.

They were next near Wilson Playfields in Kent, according to cellphone tower data. Cerda’s cellphone continued to connect with cell towers and was tracked to the vicinity of 12900 SE 312th Way, where his car was located. Contreras reportedly turned off his cellphone, which was last tracked near Wilson Playfields at about 2:18 a.m., and then not turned on again until about 12:37 p.m.

A review by detectives of Contreras’ Snapchat account reportedly showed a video of him holding and pointing Cerda’s Glock handgun, confirmed via the visible serial number, and matches the handgun recovered from Cerda’s vehicle, according to charging papers.

During a brief interview with detectives, Contreras reportedly said he had met Cerda once. He said he was never in Auburn. Contreras then ended the interview.

Reporting from a previous Sound Publishing article was used in this story.