PORTLAND — A Kalama resident accused of helping a suspect avoid capture after shooting a southwest Washington sheriff’s deputy took the man’s gun and led him to an abandoned barn, according to a report.
Matthew Veatch, 25, told police that Brian Butts showed up at his home several minutes after Veatch heard an apparent gunshot on the night of the fatal deputy shooting, according to court records cited by The Daily News of Longview. Butts “appeared dirty and stated he needed to get out of there,” according to the news report.
He also gave Veatch a handgun to “get rid of,” the newspaper reports.
Veatch told officers he put the gun in a locked cabinet and led Butts, 33, through the woods for several hours. Butts allegedly told him he shot a law enforcement officer.
Veatch led Butts to an abandoned barn, according to the news report, and the pair separated.
Police found Butts on Sunday night after a lengthy manhunt. He was fatally shot by two police officers as he ran out of the woods with a gun in Kalama, authorities said. He is suspected of killing Cowlitz County Deputy Justin DeRosier after the deputy was sent late Saturday to check on a disabled vehicle blocking a road about 3 miles east of Interstate 5.
The deputy died during surgery at a Vancouver hospital.
Suspect in Cowlitz deputy’s slaying is half-brother of Rainier police chief’s killer
Brian Butts, 33, is suspected of killing Cowlitz County Deputy Justin DeRosier.
Veatch was later arrested and jailed on suspicion of first-degree rendering criminal assistance. He was held in lieu of $50,000 bail, according to The Daily News. Jail records show he was released from the Cowlitz County Jail on Monday evening.
Veatch’s brother, 33-year-old Michael Veatch was also arrested on an unrelated warrant Sunday and remains in jail. Cowlitz County Prosecutor Ryan Jurvakainen told The Daily News his office hadn’t filed charges connecting the elder Veatch to the deputy killing as of Monday afternoon.
The brothers are associates of Butts, according to Sgt. Brent Waddell, spokesman for Clark County Sheriff’s Office.
Butts is also the half-brother of Daniel Butts, who last month pleaded guilty to fatally shooting Rainier Police Chief Ralph Painter eight years ago during a struggle at a car stereo shop. Butts was sentenced last month to life with the possibility of parole after nearly 49 years.
