Kent man sentenced for 2022 fatal shooting in Federal Way

A Kent man was sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison for fatally shooting a man who was a stranger to him in Federal Way in 2022 after someone in the street yelled at the car he was riding in to slow down.

Sir Antonio-Patrick Agee, 22, was sentenced Dec. 12 in King County Superior Court at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent to 155 months in prison, He pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Nov. 17.

Agee’s charge stems from a July 4, 2022, incident where, around 10 p.m., a car Agee was in had been speeding through a neighborhood near the 33400 block of 35th Avenue SW in Federal Way, where Matthew Saelor and others were celebrating Independence Day. According to charging documents, someone who was not Saelor yelled at the car to slow down because kids were playing in the street, and Agee subsequently yelled expletives and shot at the group, and Saelor was struck in the head.

Witnesses told police they saw a white sedan speeding down the street at the time of the incident. Officers then located a vehicle driving erratically whose location and description matched the vehicle that Agee was in when Saelor was shot.

The vehicle was stopped, officers found a firearm, and a witness identified the car as the one at the shooting. One of the occupants was Agee, and a witness stated that he looked like the person who shot Saelor.

Agee was initially charged with first-degree assault, but after Saelor’s death on July 7, 2022, Agee’s charge was amended to first-degree murder before the charge was amended to first-degree manslaughter following Agee’s guilty plea.

Agee’s sentencing

Prosecutor Gretchen Holmgren recommended that Agee receive the maximum sentence of 125 months, plus a mandatory firearm enhancement of 60 months, for a total sentence of 185 months — a little over 15 years. However, Agee’s counsel recommended that he serve the minimum sentence of 95 months, plus a mandatory firearm enhancement of 60 months, for a total sentence of 155 months — a little under 13 years.

Holmgren stated that a second defendant was charged because investigators discovered that two different guns with different DNA on them were used during the incident. Holmgren stated that they were not able to determine which gun caused Saelor’s death.

The state’s inability to determine which firearm caused Saelor’s death, along with Agee’s age and the facts of the case, were taken into consideration when the state made its recommendation and came to the resolution of Agee’s guilty plea. She stated that the fact that Agee was part of a robbery three months before the death of Saelor also factored into the state’s recommendation.

Agee’s defense stated that a low-end sentence was warranted because Agee did not mean to intentionally harm anyone, and it was further noted that he has been working toward earning a high school diploma since he has been incarcerated. His defense stated that Agee’s early life had significant challenges, such as family instability, exposure to drugs and his father being convicted of murder.

In a statement to the court, Saelor’s father stated that Saelor was a good student, a kind person, and that he had a dream for his future. Saelor’s father asked that Agee receive the maximum sentence.

“Our family is broken. Every day we feel the pain of losing him. Our other children were scared and sad. We are all affected by this,” Saelor’s father stated. “We miss his smile, his laughter and his future. We feel the loss without him. The violence has destroyed our sense of safety. We no longer feel safe in our home. This has changed our life forever. No family should go through this kind of pain.”

Multiple members of Saelor’s family, including sisters who were there when Saelor was shot, also gave statements to the court.

Agee’s co-defendant

Agee’s co-defendant, Morris Phillips, 22, of Kent, was also charged in relation to the murder of Saelor, but over two years later, on Aug. 30, 2024, due to a new development in DNA, Phillips was charged with first-degree murder.

According to Phillips’ charging documents, new evidence found that Phillips also played a role in the murder. The charges filed against Phillips arose when new evidence revealed that a second firearm found in the vehicle that was fired at the scene had Phillips’ DNA on it.

Inside the vehicle that was used during the drive-by shooting, there was a Glock 19 handgun and a Polymer 80 handgun. At the scene, there were two shell casings and one bullet slug recovered that had been fired by the Polymer 80 9mm, and two shell casings had been fired by the Glock 19 9mm.

When the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory analyzed Phillips’ DNA, it was determined that Phillips was excluded as a contributor to the DNA profile on the Glock 19, but his DNA was found on the Polymer 80’s grip, trigger and guard.

Phillips’ next hearing is on Jan. 20. He has a trial date of March 2, but trial dates are often delayed to give attorneys more time to prepare the case.