Crime & Safety
Charges Filed Against Burglary Suspect Involved in Case Where Owner Shot and Killed Second Suspect
Joseph Michael Zelepuza, 21, faces three felony counts of residential burglary, unlawful possession of a firearm and theft of a firearm, reports The Courier-Herald.
The King County Prosecutors Office this week filed charges against the surviving home burglary suspect involved in an incident in April in which the homeowner shot and killed a second suspect, reports The Courier-Herald.
Joseph Michael Zelepuza, 21, faces three felony counts of residential burglary, unlawful possession of a firearm and theft of a firearm.
Zelepuza reportedly had prior convictions for offenses including theft, residential burglary, reckless driving and DUI as a minor, the newspaper reports.
The property owner reportedly fired his weapon twice while the suspects were in his home; the suspect who was killed - Michael C. Roberts, 50, - was found lying on his stomach at the bottom of the stairs. Zelepuza fled in the homeowner's daughters vehicle and was later found by police, said The Courier-Herald.
The Enumclaw incident on April 15 came 10 days after a Maple Valley man killed an intruder on his property. According to The Seattle Times at the time, prosecutors were weighing whether that shooting was justified.
King County Prosecutor Dan Donohoe said the homeowner in Enumclaw is not under investigation and is not being charged.
Online: Charges filed in April home burglary and shooting case (The Courier-Herald)
Enumclaw homeowner kills intruder; second sought (The Seattle Times)
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