EVERETT — The last time anybody heard from Justin Allan was over month ago.
Investigators believe Allan, 49, of Everett, was shot to death by his former landlord, Lloyd Richmond. Richmond, 84, is now charged with second-degree murder.
Allan had been renting one of five rooms in Richmond’s house in the 8800 block of Del Campo Way in Everett, according to charging papers filed last week in Snohomish County Superior Court.
On Aug. 28, a Saturday afternoon, several neighbors reported hearing an argument between Richmond and one of his tenants, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.
Neighbors reported hearing three distinct “pops” that sounded like gunshots around 2:30 p.m. that Saturday.
One neighbor looked out his kitchen window, he reported, to see what the commotion was about. The neighbor told police that Richmond generally moved slowly, but moved “quicker than normal” that afternoon.
The neighbor reportedly saw Richmond get a gray tarp, wrap a “mound”-like object in the driveway and load it into the bed of his Dodge pickup with a winch, according to court papers filed by deputy prosecutor Bob Hendrix. The neighbor described the wrapped-up item as “human-sized and heavy looking.”
The next afternoon, the neighbor saw Richmond use a ratchet to move the mound from the Dodge to a red Chevy Trailblazer, shut the hatch and drive away at about 12:30 p.m., according to the charges. The neighbor reportedly did not see Richmond again until 8 p.m.
“When he did see (Richmond), he was disheveled, his shirt was untucked, and he was drinking something that was covered in a brown paper bag,” the charges say.
Richmond was arrested the following week. Detectives wrote they observed bruising on both of his arms, consistent with lifting a heavy object. Detectives also saw red marks on his shoes that appeared to be blood.
Detectives found a red stain in the driveway of Richmond’s house. A chemical test confirmed the substance was blood. Allan’s mother and father sent DNA samples to a lab for testing to see if it matched blood samples collected from Richmond’s truck, driveway and shoes.
DNA test results found an apparent familial match between the crime scene evidence and Allan’s parents.
Police found a .22-caliber gun in Richmond’s Chevy after he was arrested. A fired bullet of the same caliber was found near Richmond’s home. Police also found .22-caliber ammunition in Richmond’s bedroom.
An investigation determined Richmond got rid of Allan’s Honda and that the car had been stripped for parts, according to court documents.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Richmond was being held in the Snohomish County Jail in lieu of $1.2 million bail.
The Everett man faces charges for two counts of second-degree assault, one count of first-degree assault and second-degree murder.
Ellen Dennis: 425-339-3486; edennis@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @reporterellen
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