Man charged with 2005 murder
EPHRATA — A man involved in a 2005 murder near Mattawa is facing charges in Grant County Superior Court.
James I. Collins, 27, Lebanon, Ore., is charged with one count of murder in the first degree.
The case was originally filed in September 2007, with an arrest warrant issued in late September 2007.
Collins was arrested in Bushenell, Fla., on May 30 and was transferred to the Grant County Jail, according to Grant County sheriff’s records.
Collins is accused of taking part in a 2005 homicide with Marcus Quesnell, 33, of Grant County.
Quesnell pleaded guilty to murder in the second degree in October 2006. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Collins was reportedly with Quesnell at a friend’s house at about 3 a.m. on July 4, 2005, when Jon Carrico came to the house.
Collins and Carrico allegedly started arguing about two stereo amplifiers Carrico sold the other man and about money Carrico owed for methamphetamine, according to a Grant County sheriff’s report.
Carrico reportedly agreed to pay Collins, saying he would go to the men’s house to pick up the amplifiers, according to a witness’ statement. The three men allegedly got into a car with Collins driving to Road U Southwest, where there was a root cellar Carrico stayed in, according to the police report.
When they reached the root cellar, the three men allegedly entered and started smoking methamphetamine, according to the police report. Quesnell told police Collins brought a briefcase with a .22 caliber pistol inside of it and set it on a tree stump outside the root cellar.
Quesnell walked outside, picked up the gun and shot Carrico, according to Quesnell’s statement.
The two men reportedly came up with multiple stories, including saying Carrico “went crazy,” and that Collins killed Carrico, according to court records.
Carrico’s mother contacted the Ocean Shores Police Department to report her son missing in August 2005. Police allegedly found Carrico’s body in the root cellar in October 2005. It was identified with dental records by the King County Medical Examiner’s Office.