Federal Way police are investigating last week’s homicide as a potential retaliation case.

Murder victim Jeffrey G. McLaren Jr., 19, was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds in between two vehicles in the parking lot of The Cove Apartment Homes on April 3.

According to Federal Way Police Commander Stan McCall, detectives haven’t identified any persons of interest, but because McLaren was a person of interest in a previous murder, they haven’t ruled out that connection.

“My understanding is there was an attempt on [McLaren’s] life in Tacoma, he engaged in fire, he survived and one of the parties didn’t,” McCall said. “Eventually they cleared him as a self-defense case, but the other parties involved would be persons of interest.”

Heather Songer, a spokeswoman for the Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office, confirmed McLaren was a person of interest in the January murder of Dylan Lee Oman, but McLaren was never charged.

“Charges were not filed in this case because we were unable to disprove self-defense,” Songer said.

According to a January 13 news report, Dylan Lee Oman, 18, was killed on Jan. 11 by a “gunman who was targeting other people.”

Oman and his friends were at an apartment complex near Browns Point to help a friend who was in trouble. But it turned violent when they approached a car, and the driver, allegedly McLaren, fired several shots at the group, shooting Oman twice.

Oman was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

McLaren graduated from Todd Beamer High School in 2014.

The police department urges those with information on McLaren’s murder to contact the Federal Way Police Department by visiting their tip website, www.safecityfw.com, or by calling 253-835-2121.