A 42-year-old man allegedly pistol whipped a 22-year-old Kent man and then shot him three times at close range inside a West Hill apartment last week.
King County prosecutors on Monday charged Christopher I. Hutton, whose last known address was a Federal Way hotel, with first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the June 11 death of JaeBrione Gary at an apartment complex in the 2700 block of South 256th Place.
According to charging papers, the killing reportedly might have been to avenge an earlier robbery of Hutton by Gary.
Hutton is scheduled to be arraigned on June 29 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. He remains in the county jail in Kent with bail set at $1 million.
“The defendant chased an unarmed victim through an apartment complex,” wrote Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Adrienne T. McCoy in charging papers in seeking the high bail. “When the victim sought refuge in an apartment, the defendant pursued him inside into a small bedroom. There, the defendant attacked the victim by pistol whipping him in the head and face, shredding his ear and breaking his clavicle. The defendant then shoved the victim to the floor and shot him three times at close range (in the chest, butt and hip).”
Witness descriptions at the apartment complex of the suspect led a Kent Police officer to immediately recognize the description as being Hutton. The officer has worked for several years in the area of the shooting and had seen Hutton parked at the apartment complex in recent months in a late 1990s Cadillac El Dorado. Police had the license plate of the car and put out an all-points bulletin about Hutton and his vehicle.
Renton Police spotted the Cadillac shortly after the shooting and stopped Hutton in the 10500 block of Southeast Carr Road. He was taken into custody without incident.
Kent Police obtained a search warrant for the Cadillac and found in the trunk a chrome-color revolver wrapped in a wash rag inside a plastic grocery bag. The gun appeared to have a blood smear on it.
During an interview with detectives, Hutton denied any knowledge of the shooting of Gary and claimed he hadn’t been in that area in the previous three days. He also denied he had any guns in his car. He told detectives he had watched the NBA playoffs that night and then went to visit his wife’s residence in Renton. He said he was driving back to his Federal Way hotel when Renton Police stopped him.
Hutton has several criminal convictions, including two counts of first-degree promoting prostitution in 2007 in Kent, where he lived in an apartment. He used girls younger than 18 while running a prostitution ring.
Gary and Hutton had reportedly known each other for a number of years. An aunt of Gary told detectives that she had dated Hutton many years ago.
This marked the second time in three years that Gary had been shot. Gary testified in 2012 against a Seattle gang member who shot and wounded him outside of a South Seattle restaurant.
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