Suspects enter pleas for 2023 Auburn burglary turned shootout

Published 1:30 pm Thursday, January 8, 2026

Two suspects from an October 2023 home burglary attempt who were shot at by an Auburn homeowner have pleaded in their cases, and one was sentenced to nearly five years in prison.

The Auburn Police Department (APD) reported that two suspects pleaded in their cases related to an Oct. 19, 2023, incident where three masked men, who pretended to be police, attempted to kick down the door of a home, but then were shot at by the homeowner, resulting in a shootout. APD spokesperson Kolby Crossley stated that a third suspect in the case has yet to be identified.

“We appreciate the work of everyone involved in bringing this case to resolution and will continue to hold offenders accountable for crimes committed in our community,” APD stated.

Davante Naicell Leach, 33, of Tacoma, was initially charged with first-degree attempted burglary and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. Following an amendment to the charges, Leach pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary and his first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm charge was dismissed. On Dec. 11, 2025, Leach received a 57-month sentence — nearly five years.

With two prior violent felony convictions and one nonviolent felony conviction, Leach’s offender score was six. This put his sentencing range between 57 and 75 months.

Lonzell Isaiah King, 29, of Federal Way, who has not been sentenced yet, was initially charged with first-degree attempted burglary and two counts of first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. However, following an Alford Plea, one of the counts of unlawful possession of a firearm was dismissed, and he pleaded to first-degree attempted burglary and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

According to the Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, an Alford Plea registers a formal admission of guilt toward charges while the defendant simultaneously expresses their innocence toward those same charges.

The prosecution recommends that King receive a 77-month sentence for the first-degree attempted burglary charge and a 75-month sentence for the first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm charge. Those sentences are to run at the same time, giving him a 77-month — a little under six-and-a-half years — sentence if the judge decides to follow the prosecution’s recommendation.

King’s sentencing date is set for Jan. 9.

The Oct. 19, 2023, attempted burglary involving Leach and King matched a pattern of numerous armed home invasions targeting Asian households at that time. According to documents, King County had seen a significant increase in violent home invasion-style robberies, with suspects appearing to target persons of Asian descent.

Details of the case

At around 2 a.m. Oct. 19, the Auburn Police Department was dispatched to a residence in the 31000 block of 117th Place Southeast after receiving a report of a non-injury shooting, documents state.

Security footage of the incident showed three masked men carrying guns and announcing themselves as “Seattle police” before attempting to kick down the door.

The homeowner, who was armed, fired multiple shots at the intruders through the door, shattering the glass of their storm door, footage shows. According to documents, the suspects retreated from the porch and began firing at the residents of the home from outside before fleeing in an unknown direction.

Documents state that the homeowner who fired at the intruders advised officers that a loud banging woke up him and his wife. Fearing for their lives, the homeowner armed himself with a handgun and fired shots at the suspects.

Documents state that Leach was linked to the incident because officers found a cellphone at the scene, and while investigating, a phone number belonging to Leach repeatedly called the phone. Through that, an investigator found that Leach was staying at a Renton hotel. The GPS data on Leach’s phone placed him at the hotel at the same time as footage captured him there before the incident, and at the home of the incident when it occurred.

Officers then arrested Leach at that hotel on Nov. 1, and on his person, officers found a Glock pistol with an attachment that made it fully automatic, and pants that were the same kind officers believe he wore during the burglary attempt.

Officers then connected King to the case because the cellphone left behind at the scene belonged to him. The cellphone’s GPS data showed him leaving his Federal Way home, going to Renton, and then to the Auburn area, where and when the incident occurred. Officers later found the phone at the scene.

King was further connected to the incident because a Glock was left behind, and in February 2024, DNA results showed that King’s DNA was on the grip of the firearm. According to documents, in an attempt to locate King, officers learned from Kent police that King was also a suspect in multiple home invasions of Asian families in Kent.

Officers then arrested King on April 4, 2024, without incident. King denied involvement in any criminal activity and stated he did not know who Leach was.