EVERETT — Detectives believe an Everett man fled to Arizona after allegedly hitting and killing a man on purpose on Ebey Island in April.
Earlier this month, prosecutors charged Lucas Cartwright, 44, with second-degree murder, vehicular homicide and a hit-and-run fatality in the death of Clayton Perry, 45. At the request of prosecutors, Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Karen Moore issued a $2.5 million warrant for Cartwright’s arrest.
Until the charges, investigators had released little information about Perry’s death on April 2, other than to say he was pronounced dead on the side of the road on Ebey Island under “suspicious circumstances.”
The rift between Cartwright and Perry stems from threats Perry had made to Cartwright’s friend, according to charging papers.
Just after 11:30 a.m. April 2, Cartwright’s friend called 911. Perry, who he identified as “Mickey,” was outside his trailer on 63rd Avenue SE. Perry was threatening him, according to the charges.
Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies reportedly responded but didn’t find Perry. Not long after, Perry posted on Facebook calling Cartwright’s friend a snitch and other names. He also wrote the friend had until the end of the day to leave the property. Perry claimed the land belonged to him.
At 6:38 p.m. that night, Cartwright called 911 from the intersection of 55th Avenue SE and 12th Street SE, less than a mile from the trailer. He reported Perry had been “mouthing off” to his friend, according to court papers. He told a dispatcher someone needed to get Perry as he thought Perry had a warrant out for his arrest.
A couple hours later, Cartwright’s friend called him to complain Perry was threatening him with a flare gun while he was in his car, according to court documents. The friend was afraid to get out of his car. After they got off the phone, Cartwright again called 911.
“So, I’m gonna go out there, and I’m gonna make sure that my friend is not going to be attacked at his house,” Cartwright reportedly said on the 911 call. “‘Cause the cops obviously aren’t doing anything.”
The dispatcher said he would have police call Cartwright, according to the charges.
“I am in bound with 5 0 on my tail,” Cartwright reportedly then messaged his friend, referring to police.
Five minutes later, Cartwright called 911 to report he’d found Perry walking away from his friend’s trailer. He said he was “tailing behind him,” according to court papers. Cartwright asked for police to respond. The dispatcher told him to stop following Perry.
“I’m hanging way back,” Cartwright responded, the charges say. “I just want to make sure that he doesn’t dip off in the forest or out here, where the officers can’t find him.”
The 911 call reportedly ended at 9:19 p.m.
Sixteen minutes later, Cartwright’s friend called 911. He reported finding a body in the middle of the road while walking to the store, according to court documents. Paramedics responded and found a dead man in the 1700 block of 55th Avenue SE. The friend told a sheriff’s deputy the man looked like Perry.
Detectives found Perry’s driver’s license and shoe were about 40 feet from his body, according to the charges. Detectives surmised a car driving south hit Perry.
Cell phone data showed Cartwright was less than 1,000 feet away from where Perry’s body was found while on the 911 call. But two minutes after the call ended, he was near U.S. 2 and I-5, about 1½ miles away, prosecutors allege.
Investigators later learned Cartwright called his friend just minutes later saying he hit something or somebody, and it may have been Perry, according to court papers. The friend later acknowledged to detectives he was going to see what Cartwright had hit, not the grocery store, when he found Perry’s body.
Google records showed Cartwright searched several times for hood replacement costs for a Dodge Ram pickup in the hour after the crash. By just after 11:30 p.m. that night, he had driven to his step-uncle’s house in Graham, Pierce County, according to court documents.
The next day, Cartwright reportedly messaged his girlfriend: “Something bad happened last night and I might not be safe anymore. That’s all I can say right now.”
Cartwright and his mother bought a new grille and hood for his pickup and reportedly got it fixed that day, the charges say. Police later found the crushed hood in the step-uncle’s home.
The next day, April 4, a detective talked to Cartwright over the phone. Cartwright reported he could provide maps showing where he was on April 2. He also said he wasn’t on Ebey Island the night Perry died. He reported he was asking the dispatcher if he should go back, find Perry and follow him at a distance, according to court documents.
Two days later, someone used a credit card and email address belonging to Cartwright’s stepfather to buy a one-way plane ticket for Cartwright from Bellingham to Phoenix, according to court filings. That night, he told someone he was “dippin’ state” because “I’ve done something real bad.”
On April 14, Cartwright reportedly flew to Phoenix.
In May, he messaged someone, “I work and take care of business. But I am a (expletive) gangster.” Then, he immediately sent a news article about Perry’s death. A couple days later, he flew back to Sea-Tac International Airport on a ticket his mother bought, according to court documents.
But a week later, police in Arizona arrested him for investigation of driving under the influence, the charges say. His Dodge Ram was impounded.
As of Monday, authorities were still searching for Cartwright. Tips can be given to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office at 425-388-3845.
Jake Goldstein-Street: 425-339-3439; jake.goldstein-street@heraldnet.com; X: @GoldsteinStreet.
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