Man accused of killing teen outside Renton Big 5 pleads not guilty

RENTON, Wash. - The off-duty security guard accused of murdering a teenager who was returning an airsoft gun to a store pleaded not guilty on Monday.

Aaron Brown Myers, 51, is charged with second-degree murder and second-degree assault for an incident that happened on June 5 outside the Big 5 Sporting Goods store in the Renton Village Shopping Center.

Investigators say Myers, who works as a security guard, was not even working in the parking lot where he gunned down 17-year-old Hazrat Ali Rohani.

According to court documents, Myers was picking up his son at the shopping center when he confronted three teens outside the Big 5, believing they were about to rob the store. Myers said one of the teens had a gun in his waistband, but it turned out to be an airsoft gun that the teen was returning.

Myers held the teens at gunpoint, but even after they put their hands up and tossed the airsoft gun to the side, Myers opened fire on Rohani as he appeared to reach for something in his waistband. Court documents state Rohani initially tried to run away, and Myers continued to fire at him on the ground.

In total, investigators say Myers shot Rohani seven times.

This isn't Myers' first incident either.

Probable cause documents from 2022 say Myers called 911, telling police he might have to shoot someone he saw with a gun. The gun Myers thought he saw was actually a piece of metal, possibly a part of the person's bike. No charges were filed in the incident, and no one was hurt.

On Monday, Myers' attorney did not dispute the $2 million bail in the King County courtroom, but asked for the right to do so later.

The judge ruled that Myers' face could not be shown on camera, despite family and friends of Rohani pleading for his identity to be made public.

"We want the community to recognize who the person is, so if in the future if he gets out, other people are safer from him," said one family member. "We want the media to provide what’s going on, we don’t want the same incident to happen again."

However, Judge Johanna Bender still ruled against it.

"I am concerned about any escalation in violence that would lead to more tragedy or more unnecessary harm," Bender said.

Myers' next court date is scheduled for late August.