GRANITE FALLS — Two Snohomish County men who allegedly barged into a motorhome and shot a man who’d been in bed with his wife were charged with one count each of first-degree murder last week.
Dillon Thomas, 28, of Lynnwood, and David Koeppen, 37, of Everett, were charged Wednesday in connection with the Feb. 7 incident. Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Cindy Larsen set bail at $2 million for each suspect.
On the morning of the shooting, video surveillance captured the two suspects arriving near the 1500 block of 116th St. NE, where Austin Hoerner lived in a motorhome next door to his parent’s house. Phone records showed the two men remained in the area for about two hours before Hoerner was shot.
At 8:20 a.m., Thomas and Koeppen reportedly broke into the RV and found Hoerner and his wife in bed. According to the affidavit, Hoerner did not seem to know either suspect.
Koeppen reportedly began shouting death threats at Hoerner, who had “his hands raised in compliance.” The wife later told authorities Hoerner began “speaking loudly” at the two men hoping to draw the attention of his parents. Koeppen then fired at Hoerner multiple times, the affidavit said.
Hoerner was taken to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett where he died four days later. He was 33.
Thomas and Koeppen fled the scene in what appeared to be a 2014 silver Ford Fusion. Investigators used video and cell phone records to pinpoint the two suspects arriving at Koeppen’s Everett apartment around 9:40 a.m.
Both men already were in custody when charged.
On Feb. 9, Koeppen was arrested for investigation of three counts of unlawful possession of a firearm. When questioned by police about the motorhome shooting, he denied being in Arlington at the time of the shooting and instead said he was in Seattle, according to the affidavit.
Days later, police searched Koeppen’s home and found a fired .45 caliber cartridge casing that appeared to match two casings found at the shooting scene.
Police also found articles of clothing at Koeppen’s apartment that matched that worn by the suspects seen on the video.
On Feb. 24, Thomas was arrested for possession of a stolen vehicle, unlawful possession of a firearm and obstructing a law enforcement officer in an unrelated incident.
Koeppen and Thomas have extensive criminal histories with a combined 19 felony convictions across three states. A jury trial is scheduled to start in May.
Maya Tizon 425-334-3939; maya.tizon@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @mayatizon.
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