Bodies ID'd in homicide investigation; two charged with 1st degree murder
The bodies of Larry and Deborah Dutton of rural Washington County were identified as victims during a double homicide investigation over the weekend, Washington County Undersheriff Jon M. Copeland announced Monday.
Lucas Anthony Walker, 20, was arrested and charged Friday with first-degree murder and discharging a firearm "during and in relation to a crime of violence," Copeland said. The Duttons' granddaughter, Heidi Dutton, 17, was also arrested in connection with the investigation.
On Tuesday, she was charged as an adult with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of desecration of a human corpse and one count of conspiracy.
A complaint filed in federal court alleges that "on or about Dec. 19, 2022, Walker entered the home near Dewey while the victims were sleeping and killed the couple when they awoke. It further alleges that he and [Dutton] later buried the victims in the home’s backyard."
On January 20, 2023, personnel from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office arrived at the Dutton residence in the 397000 block of west 1300 Road, northeast of Dewey to conduct a welfare check based on the suspicious disappearance of the couple, the complaint said.
According to the complaint, Walker and Dutton were occupying the residence when law enforcement arrived. During a search of the residence, evidence was allegedly discovered indicating a crime had likely taken place.
The bodies of the couple were recovered Sunday and were sent to the Medical Examiner's office in Tulsa.
District Attorney Will Drake has charged Dutton as an adult in district court.
. The juvenile's name has been withheld until court proceedings permit the release.
“The WCSO continues to investigate this case and is working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office (Tulsa), the FBI (Tulsa office), the OSBI (Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation), the Medical Examiner’s Office (Tulsa), and the 11th Judicial District Attorney’s Office (Washington County), a WCSO release said.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Bodies ID'd in homicide investigation; two charged with 1st degree murder
