A transient man who allegedly doused another man and his car with gasoline and set them both on fire last summer is facing a third-strike offense, and if convicted, life in prison.
Rick LHW “Left Handed Wolf” Stone, 44, appeared Friday morning via Zoom in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree arson.
He was arrested Thursday by the Vancouver Police Department Major Crimes Team and members of the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force on a warrant.
As he was booked into the Clark County Jail, deputies found suspected methamphetamine among his belongings. He additionally appeared in court Friday on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine.
Senior Deputy Prosecutor Jeff McCarty said Stone has a lengthy criminal history that includes failure to register, kidnapping and a 2002 arson, as well as 41 prior warrants. McCarty said a motion was filed requesting the judge order a no-bail hold or $2 million bail, pending a hearing.
Judge Daniel Stahnke set Stone’s bail at $2,520,000 between his two cases. Stone is due back in court Feb. 12.
Altercation precipitated fire
Shortly after 10 p.m. on July 2, Vancouver police and firefighters responded to a vehicle fire at the St. Johns Mini Mart, 2901 St. Johns Blvd. Upon arrival, a man, identified as Mitchel Kedalo, 63, was found suffering from burns on the left side of his body. He was taken to a burn center in Oregon for treatment, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
Police obtained surveillance footage from the mini mart that showed a man wearing a yellow or green neon-colored jacket, pouring suspected gasoline both on Kedalo, who was seated in his car, and the car and then igniting it. Kedalo got out of the car, but the fire spread. Engulfed in flames, he ran inside the mini mart where customers helped extinguish him, the affidavit says.
Officers searched the area for the assailant and found the jacket discarded in the road near East 30th and Y streets. The jacket smelled of gasoline and had a company logo on it. Investigators later learned it had been stolen from someone’s work pickup, court records state.
Further investigation found that Kedalo had gotten into a fight with a man and two women about a half-hour before the fire outside the mini mart. Authorities said they believe the man was Stone and one of the women was his girlfriend. The three left, but Stone returned wearing the neon jacket and carrying what appeared to be a bag spilling liquid, the affidavit says.
Kedalo told investigators the fight started after he asked the trio for a cigarette and the man threatened him, according to court records. In September, investigators received an anonymous tip that the arson suspect was Stone. The tipster said they learned Stone was angry with Kedalo because he believed he was “hitting on” his girlfriend, the affidavit states.
DNA analysis on the jacket came back last month as a match to a Rick Kelly, one of Stone’s apparent aliases, and his girlfriend. Details about Stone’s arrest were not included in court documents.
