Man shot to death in tent in Parkland remembered as loving father with talent for pottery
A 47-year-old man shot and killed in a tent earlier this month in Parkland has been identified by the medical examiner. Friends and relatives said he was a charismatic man who loved his family and had a talent for pottery.
John Armijo died April 8 of multiple gunshot wounds, the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office said in a news release issued Thursday. The office ruled his death a homicide.
No arrests have been made. The Sheriff’s Department said Armijo was found dead in a tent near the 1600 block of 110th Street, just south of state Route 512, after a woman called 911. Deputies said it appeared the shooting occurred some time overnight. It’s unclear what led to the gunfire.
Sgt. Darren Moss said Tuesday that he didn’t have any updates on the investigation. He said the tent Armijo had been staying in wasn’t far from other tents, a church and several homes. Deputies canvassed the area for witnesses, and Moss said several people reported hearing gunfire.
Armijo’s daughter, Ashley Hall, told The News Tribune that detectives confirmed to her Armijo was unarmed and in his boxers when he was shot. The medical examiner told her Armijo was shot seven times. On Tuesday, she said she’d spent the last few days putting up fliers in the Tacoma area with his name and the Crime Stoppers tip line, 1-800-222-TIPS.
“His children and his granddaughters deserve to know what happened,” Hall, 32, said.
Armijo spent most of his childhood in Walla Walla with three brothers and a sister, Hall said. He loved heavy metal band Iron Maiden and others such as Pearl Jam and Sublime. Armijo sang backup vocals in a metal band when he was younger, Hall said, and she still remembers him tossing back his long black hair while he sang.
He was a father to four children and a grandfather to Hall’s three daughters. Hall said Armijo was great with children and a good listener. She recalled talking to him for hours when she was a girl about a book series she was reading.
“He would listen because he cared about you,” Hall said.
Pottery was another of Armijo’s strengths. Hall said he made working a potter’s wheel look easy. Brooke Brotherton, a relative of one of Armijo’s high school friends, called his pieces beautiful. The craft was Armijo’s job for a time at a pottery studio in Walla Walla, his daughter said, but he later moved on to make a living building steel shelving.
Before coming to the Tacoma area, Armijo lived in Lakebay with Hall’s mother, Roxanne. Hall said they eventually lost their house, and the two began staying with their daughter and friends in Tacoma. Hall said her father struggled with addiction for a few years, which led to him living without housing. She said the stigma associated with homelessness brought nasty comments from people about Armijo’s life — and make it easy for them to disregard his death.
“He had an entire life and he has a huge family that just wants answers,” Hall said. “Everyone’s missing him.”
Anyone with information can contact the Sheriff’s Department or submit a tip through Crime Stoppers.
