Mattawa man charged for pointing homemade gun at sister

EPHRATA — A Mattawa man was charged for allegedly pointing a homemade weapon at his sister and threatening to shoot her.

Grant County prosecutors charged Malcom Engle Sr., 33, of Mattawa, with second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and harassment.

Engle’s charges stem from an incident on May 30 when the Grant County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a physical domestic violence incident in the 30400 block of state Route 243 in Mattawa. The reporting party said she was sitting in a shed with her mother on the SR-243 property when she heard her brother, Engle, go into an RV parked on the west side of the shed to use the restroom. Engle’s sister yelled into the RV, advising her brother to not use the bathroom, as it was broken, according to police records.

Engle reportedly got upset and opened the door to the shed, where his sister and mother were sitting inside on a bed. He pulled out a homemade gun and pointed it at his sister and told her he was going to shoot her.

The homemade gun was reportedly located next to Engle when he was taken into custody. Engle’s sister described the weapon as a small piece of pipe that fires a bullet that is placed into the back of the weapon and the back is then screwed onto the pipe. She said she knew the gun was loaded and her brother had shown it to her a few days before the incident. A certified range instructor with the sheriff’s office confirmed the gun was in fact capable of firing a round.

“Malcom pointed the weapon at her (his sister) and made threats to shoot her if she called the cops after forcing his way into the shed the first time he made threats to the victim,” wrote a deputy.

Engle’s mother corroborated the story of her son pointing the homemade gun at his sister. She pleaded with her son to stop and he apparently lowered his arms and the two women were able to get him out of the shed and lock the door. Engle tried to gain entry back into the shed and started kicking the door.

Engle’s sister stated she thought her brother heard her on the phone with police and he fled the area. Officers with the Mattawa Police Department spotted Engle walking west away from the residence and began following him into a wildlife area. K-9 Grizzly and his handler, Deputy Dave De La Rosa, arrived at the scene and began tracking Engle. They were able to track down the suspect and find him hiding in a row of Russian olive trees, according to police records.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.