NEWMAN LAKE, Wash. – The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) made an arrest in connection with a drive-by shooting report in the Newman Lake area on August 2.
Deputies arriving at a residence on N. McCoy Road at approximately 9:30 p.m. found several people at the home, but no one was injured, SCSO said in a release.
Through their investigation, deputies said they identified 32-year-old Robert D. Utecht as a suspect.
Utecht was under a valid protection order prohibiting him from being within 1000 feet of the victim’s property, the release said.
Assisted by Spokane Valley Deputies, Liberty Lake Police Officers and K9 units, a perimeter was set around the suspect’s residence in Liberty Lake.
After several announcements, investigators said Utecht surrendered peacefully around 11:55 p.m. and was booked into jail on five counts of Assault 1st Degree, Drive-by Shooting and two counts of Violation of a Protection Order with Assault.
In , investigators identified Utecht as a suspect who argued with another man at the same address and shot him in the foot.
SCSO later requested the charges against Utecht in that case be dropped, citing self-defense.
