An Everett man who may have tried to use a cat to detect who was stealing from him was charged with first-degree murder Friday in a shooting incident last weekend near Lake Stevens.
Bail was maintained at $500,000 for Clayton Edward Butsch, 38, who was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of shooting a man who was sleeping in a chair.
The body of Chad J. Vavricka, 30, of Snohomish was found by a couple Sunday where it had been dumped near a pile of garbage in the 2100 block of Menzel Lake Road near Snohomish.
A witness fled a fifth-wheel trailer where the shooting happened and reported it to Okanogan County law officers.
The witness said he visited the trailer on Saturday and described how Butsch believed he could tell who was stealing from him by who the cat disliked. The witness petted the cat, and Butsch attempted to call the cat over to Vavricka, court documents said.
The cat wouldn’t come to Vavricka.
"At this point, the defendant thought there was something wrong with Mr. Vavricka because the cat wouldn’t go near him," deputy prosecutor Lisa Paul said.
A short time later, Butsch walked past the witness to where Vavricka was sleeping in the chair. The witness heard a "pop," and Vavricka stood up yelling and screaming, Paul said.
Butsch stood there with what appeared to be a .22-caliber pistol in his hand, and backed up as if to fire another shot, Paul said.
The witness said he ran out the door, stayed at a friend’s house that night and had his brother drive him east of the Cascade Mountains before he reported the shooting.
A young woman also was at the trailer at the time of the shooting and told investigators that Butsch acted "delusional," Paul said. She also told detectives Butsch thought he was on the "Truman Show" and there were cameras hidden in his trailer, Paul said. The witness added that he "thinks everybody’s watching him."
Butsch has an extensive criminal history, including convictions for assault, intimidating a witness, intimidating a public servant and animal cruelty.
In 1995, an intimidation charge included threats to a victim while Butsch roasted the victim’s kitten alive in an oven as it shrieked and tried to claw its way out, Paul said.
Butsch is scheduled to be arraigned Monday.
Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.
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