Man wanted in Washington double murder investigation arrested in Jefferson County

Published 12:16 pm Monday, April 10, 2023

A man wanted on suspicion of killing two people who were shot and then set on fire in Washington was arrested Sunday in Jefferson County.

John Raczykowski, 31, of Rufus, Oregon, faces charges of murder in connection to the March 16 killing on the Yakama Nation Tribal Reservation of Elisha King, 34, and Jeremy Wyatt, 35, according to news reports.

Deputies with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report that Raczykowski was at an address off of SE McTaggart Road in Jefferson County at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday, according to a press release from Jefferson County Sheriff Jason Pollock.

Deputies were told that Raczykowski was armed and dangerous, so the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team responded, prompting a short standoff before Raczykowski was arrested without incident, Pollock said.

Detectives with the Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office are continuing to investigate, Pollock said.

Raczykowski is one of two suspects in the killing of King and Wyatt, who are both from Yakima. Authorities told YakTriNews that the two were shot and killed north of Goldendale, Washington.

Their burned bodies were found about 3 miles off of U.S. Highway 97 and Pumphouse Road in Toppenish, according to news reports.

The other suspect is Larry Kleven, 57, of Goldendale, who was arrested by Klickitat County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI during a traffic stop the day after authorities say the killings occurred. He faces charges of rendering criminal assistance and tampering with physical evidence, according to news reports.