SEATTLE — A man accused of killing an employee at a Seattle beer garden last weekend did not appear at his first court appearance on Tuesday.
The 20-year-old suspect turned himself in to authorities on Monday after allegedly shooting and killing Quuassa Margarsa last Saturday morning.
Despite no plea being entered, the defense didn’t deny the suspect pulled the trigger, saying rather it was self-defense.
The presiding judge in the King County Jail courtroom found probable cause Tuesday to hold the suspect on a $2 million bail while prosecutors work to file charges for second-degree murder, which they expect to come on Thursday.
In court documents, investigators say that Margarsa was in The Growler Guys with two other people, the suspect and another woman. The documents state that the pair met Margarsa at an after-hours hookah lounge early Saturday morning.
Investigators and prosecutors say they reviewed surveillance video from inside the taproom showing the three arriving at 5:30 a.m. that same morning, “hanging out, drinking, and possibly doing narcotics together. It appears to be a friendly interaction for the majority of the time,” the probable cause documents read.
Around 6:40 a.m., prosecutors note a shift. While cameras do not have audio, they say Margarsa and the suspect “appear to be speaking animatedly and gesticulating.”
Documents state Margarsa walked towards the door, where the three came in, which is locked with a deadbolt. That’s when prosecutors say the suspect pulled a gun out of his cross-body bag and shot Margarsa, once in the head and twice more when he hit the ground.
“Mr. Margarsa was found with a key in his dead hand. Not a weapon, not a gun, a key,” stated Chris Anderson, the senior deputy prosecuting attorney with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office, who is leading the case. Anderson also responded to the scene on Saturday.
The suspect’s defense attorney, Pete Mazzone, claims his client was acting in self-defense, a claim that centers around that locked door.
“The feeling was, ‘We’re locked in here, and the guy doesn’t want the girl to leave,’” Mazzone said.
Anderson says the woman is cooperating with investigators, saying she grabbed her ear as the gunshots were fired and claiming she didn’t know the suspect had a gun.
The judge ordered the suspect to appear in future court hearings, including Thursday, when prosecutors expect to file charges.
A Community Mourns
Two memorials continue to grow outside The Growler Guys, with candles burning for days, placed by those hoping to pay respects to him. A basketball lies in between them, and a Nathan Hale High School basketball jersey is wrapped around a street sign. A vigil that began on Sunday continued through Tuesday evening, with mourners adding flowers and saying a few words. Elliot Bremson says he met Q on that basketball team.
“He could meet anyone and could make you feel comfortable with him. He could bring up anyone with him and celebrate everyone around him,” Bremson said. “I think that’s why so many people felt this loss.”
Q was on the Nathan Hale team that won a national championship. Bremson says he was a big part of the cohesion on that team. Dustin Anthony, who went to middle school and high school with Q, said he would coach kids at the Meadowbrook Community Center.
“He helped all the boys around the community center,” Anthony said. “It’s still shocking to me that he’s gone in this way.
A GoFundMe has been created to help Q’s family with the cost of funeral expenses.
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