Man arrested near Moses Lake stabbed a Wisconsin cop in 2005
EPHRATA — A man who was apprehended Tuesday night at a rest stop near Moses Lake was committed to a mental health institution over 10 years ago after stabbing a police officer in the neck in Wisconsin.
47-year-old Eric Schuette was taken into custody late Tuesday night at the Winchester Rest Area on Interstate 90 after callers reporting hearing some sort of struggle in a vehicle at the location. The Moses Lake Regional Tactical Response Team (TRT) was activated and responded to the scene and TRT members were able to take Schuette into custody.
Court documents indicate Schuette previously entered an Alford plea in 2006 to first-degree attempted homicide in connection with an incident in November 2005 in Manitowoc, Wis. In an Alford plea a defendant is not pleading guilty to a crime, but believes they would be found guilty if the case were to proceed to trial.
On Nov. 10, 2005 the Manitowoc City Police Department received a report of a man pointing a gun/rifle into a wooded area in the city. An officer responded and located Schuette in the area. Schuette walked away from the officer, who gave chase and was able to tackle the suspect from behind. During the struggle with the officer Schuette pulled out a knife and stabbed the officer in the neck.
The officer survived the stabbing and the suspect was later taken into custody. During his interview with police, Schuette claimed he got jumped by a “fake cop” and stated the cop was one of “Jeb Bush’s sons.”
“Schuette stated Jeb Bush’s son pulled up in what appeared to be a Manitowoc police car and said he wanted to talk to him,” according to Manitowoc police records. “Schuette stated that Jeb Bush’s son was dressed like a cop. Schuette stated when the person who he believes to be Jeb Bush’s son stated he wanted to talk to him, he informed him he did not want to talk to him.”
Schuette went on to say he believed Jeb Bush’s son was going to kill him because he was part of the mob.
“Schuette stated the person chasing him was Hitler’s son and that he knows the Grand Devil and that is why the voices said it is Governor Jeb Bush’s son that was chasing him.”
Schuette was found “guilty but not guilty due to mental disease/defect” by a judge and was committed to the Department of Health Services in November 2006. Court documents indicate Schuette was released on April, 12, 2016 on a conditional release and was placed under supervision. Schuette reportedly violated the conditions of his release on Feb. 27, 2017 and court documents state his case worker has unsuccessfully attempted to contact him since Feb. 27.
In a letter filed with the court, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker requested a Governor’s Warrant to extradite Schuette back to Wisconsin. It is unclear why Schuette was in the area or why he left Wisconsin, which is a violation of the terms of his release.