Man arrested for murder after 'special spot' story fails to hold up

MORTON, Wash. -- A 32-year-old Lewis County man was booked into Lewis County Jail Friday for allegedly choking his fiancée to death.

Police received a call from a Morton, Wash., resident early Friday morning who said a man had come to her house in the 5900 block of State Route 598 to report his fiancée was in a car accident and not breathing. The man allegedly told the homeowner that he and his fiancée were "jumped" on the Forest Service Road and that he was trying to get away in his car when he got into a brutal accident. His significant other was knocked unconscious.

Emergency workers rushed to the scene of the accident and found the victim deceased in the car.

The man told police he and his girlfriend were visiting "their special spot" on the road when three men jumped them. The suspect said he was able to fight them off and drag the woman back to the car, but as he drove away he lost consciousness and crashed. Then he ran to a house about two miles away to call 911.

The suspect identified an alleged assailant, but when police investigated the man they determined he was not at the scene at the time of the woman's death. Lewis County Sheriff's deputies quickly grew suspicious of the suspect's story, and knew he had a history of domestic violence with his would-be wife.

The Lewis County Corner's Office later said the woman died from strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head. The coroner's office determined there were no apparent injuries from the collision. Police identified the man as the primary suspect and arrested him without incident.

The suspect is due in Lewis County Court at 4 p.m. Monday and is expected to be charged with murder.