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Man sentenced to 19 years for rideshare driver murder
An Edmonds man was sentenced to more than 19 years in prison for fatally shooting a rideshare driver last year.
An Edmonds man was sentenced to more than 19 years in prison for fatally shooting a rideshare driver last year.
Alex M. Waggoner, 23, was convicted of murder in July for the death of 31-year-old Abdulkadir Shariif Gedi.
The backstory:
According to court documents, Gedi was driving on Edmonds Way on Jan. 3, 2024, when he nearly hit Waggoner, who was in a crosswalk. Gedi's dashcam video captured the interaction, showing that when Gedi rolled down his window to apologize, Waggoner fired 11 shots into the car, striking Shariif in the head.
Waggoner's defense team claimed he acted in self-defense, arguing he believed Gedi was trying to hit him and mistook a cellphone for a gun. After the shooting, Waggoner ran home and was arrested a week later.
During his interview with police, Waggoner admitted he had been drinking that night and was walking to a nearby Safeway to buy more. Waggoner also confessed to shooting the driver after he almost hit him, saying he "grossly overreacted and was sorry for what he did," according to court documents.
Waggoner has been involved in more than 10 different Edmonds PD calls since October 2020. He was arrested once for domestic violence assault in 2020 and the remainder of the reports were verbal domestic disputes or behavorial health calls.
The Sentencing:
A judge sentenced Waggoner to 19 years and seven months behind bars for the murder.
Gedi's family, including his siblings, attended the sentencing on Wednesday, with four of them giving impact statements in court.
"January 3rd was a life-changing day we will never forget. One less person at our dinner table, one less person standing beside his brother at prayer. It might be one less person on this planet full of billions, but his absence is felt," said Laila Hassan, Gedi's cousin.
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Edmonds rideshare murder suspect in court
The man who, according to court documents, admitted to police that he shot and killed a rideshare driver in Edmonds appeared in court today. A judge put a $1 million bond on 21-year-old Alex Waggoner.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Edmonds Police Department and original reporting by FOX 13 Seattle.
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