Party’s descent to chaos revealed

RENO -- Witnesses described fear and chaos at an off-campus Halloween party the night three people were shot dead, according to grand jury testimony.

Transcripts of the testimony revealed the Oct. 28 party attended by some University of Nevada, Reno athletes had been calm until a group of uninvited guests assaulted a basketball player.

Sophomore forward Tyrone Hanson, since dismissed from the Nevada team, was being beaten before the person accused on three counts of murder arrived at the house, witnesses said.

Killed were Charles Coogan Kelly, 21, of Truckee, Calif.; University of Nevada, Reno senior Derek Kyle Jensen, 23, of Reno; and former UNR student Nathan Viljoen, 23, of Sparks.

The Reno Gazette-Journal reports that witnesses referred to the intruders as Tongans or Pacific Islanders in their testimony.

The man accused of being the shooter, Samisoni Taukitoku, 19, is scheduled to be arraigned today on three counts of murder with the use of a deadly weapon and four counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

He remains jailed on $1 million bond.

Saili Manu, 19, who crashed the party with Taukitoku and two 16-year-olds, has pleaded guilty to two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and is scheduled to be sentenced in August.

According to grand jury transcripts, the shootings occurred within minutes of the quartet's arrival at the party. Witnesses told of screaming, rapid-fire gunshots and a foreign language being spoken. Many witnesses heard people screaming: "Get out of the house, he's got a gun."

About 45 people had been invited to the costume party, but about 170 were there when the shooting started about 1 a.m., testified Jacob Snyder, who rented the house.

Hanson was being beaten by a group of large men before Taukitoku's group arrived. After some members of the UNR football team dragged Hanson into the kitchen, he said Taukitoku "shoved a gun" to his forehead.

"I just put my hands up," Hanson testified. "I was like, 'Please man, don't shoot. Don't shoot. It is not that serious. Please don't shoot.'"

Annetria Scott, 19, testified she saw Taukitoku shove a pistol to Hanson's head. She said Taukitoku shot Kelly, who was standing next to her.

"He kind of pointed the gun around and then kind of picked who he wanted to shoot," she said. "I remember him stopping at one guy to my left, then he stopped at me and then shot the guy right next to me. His blood actually kind of got on me."

Hanson said he did not know the men, Taukitoku, or what prompted the attack.