Lynnwood bar shooting victim died Wednesday
Published 11:03 am Monday, April 13, 2026
EVERETT — A man who was shot in the neck April 10 at a Lynnwood bar died Wednesday, according to a representative for his family.
Meco’s O’Neal, 38, was a father, youth soccer coach and mentor, the family representative said. He died after five days in the hospital surrounded by his children and loved ones. The family has launched an online memorial fund to cover funeral expenses and support his children.
On the night of the shooting, police arrested a Marysville man after he reportedly asked to turn himself in.
Around 10 p.m. Friday, Lynnwood police responded to a report of an assault with a weapon at Just Left Pub & Grill in the 4300 block of 198th Street Southwest, according to court documents. Upon arrival, witnesses directed an officer to a 38-year-old man lying face-up in the parking lot.
Bystanders were attempting to render aid to O’Neal by holding a towel to his neck and doing CPR, court documents said. First responders transported him to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett.
Prior to the assault, O’Neal asked the bartender to review security footage because he was missing his coat, court documents said. The bartender told him she could not do that, and he left the building to look for his coat.
In a written statement, one witness said he heard raised voices and saw “the Black gentleman in the cream outfit and a red-haired man in a baseball cap,” court documents said. The suspect, the man in the cap, seemed to be the aggressor, he wrote.
Another witness wrote that the suspect, 44, approached him and said “the other guy” accused the suspect of stealing his belongings, but would not elaborate on what was stolen, court documents said.
In a written statement from the bartender, she reported that the disagreement broke out because the suspect bumped into O’Neal, court documents said. A manager told officers that the suspect was “kinda racist.”
A witness sitting at the table next to O’Neal told officers he overheard the victim sounding frustrated on the phone with someone, court documents said. O’Neal allegedly told the person on the phone he knew who stole from him.
Another witness wrote that he tried to de-escalate the argument, but both men left shortly after, court documents said. After they left, he reportedly heard two gunshots.
Officers drove to the suspect’s Marysville residence to begin surveillance, court documents said. Before officers attempted to contact him, the suspect reportedly called 911 just after 11 p.m. and asked to turn himself in.
Police detained him outside his residence. He told officers he had gotten into an altercation with “some guy at the bar” who asked him to step outside, where “something happened,” court documents said.
A detective observed a blue flannel jacket in the passenger seat of a truck parked in the front lawn, court documents said. The flannel was consistent with what the suspect was wearing at the bar. The detective also observed blood spatters on the interior front passenger door.
An officer reported the suspect’s “demeanor and speech patterns indicated he may have been under the influence,” but the officer did not smell the odor of intoxicants, court documents said.
Security footage showed both men walking toward the bathrooms, court documents said. Around two minutes later, it showed the suspect exiting while carrying his flannel. Around two minutes later, camera footage showed him returning to the bathroom area without the flannel.
Just under a minute later, security footage depicted the suspect re-emerging with O’Neal stumbling behind him, court documents said. The suspect exits the bar and turns north. Shortly after O’Neal exits and looks north, but goes south. An individual who appears to be the suspect then appears “briefly walking past the bar door from the north, to the south,” behind O’Neal.
Medical staff told police they believed O’Neal’s neck injury was caused by a gunshot, court documents said. They reported a missing chunk of his ear, a shattered vertebrate and a fractured Hyoid bone. Medical staff conducted a blood draw, which showed O’Neal had a blood alcohol level of .249.
When an officer collected O’Neal’s clothes, he found approximately $15,000 in his pockets, court documents said.
Law enforcement booked the suspect into the Snohomish County Jail on suspicion of first-degree assault.
Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com. X: @JennaMillikan.
Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.
