Teenager Charged In Murder Second Teen Gets Robbery Charge

Two Post Falls teenagers were charged as adults Tuesday with playing a part in the robbery and stabbing death of an elderly Coeur d’Alene man.

David A. Woffenden, 17, is being held without bail in the Kootenai County Jail on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit robbery in the killing of Patrick Victorino.

Joshua A. Scott, 16, turned himself in to police Monday night and was being held on a charge of conspiracy to commit robbery. Magistrate Robert Burton set bail at $300,000.

Victorino, 70, was found Sunday night curled up in a bedroom with multiple stab wounds to his back and chest. Police said Victorino had scuffled with his attackers during an apparent robbery attempt.

Three more teenagers are being sought for questioning in Victorino’s murder. Neighbors told police they saw two teenagers climb over Victorino’s fence and run to a car waiting at the end of an alley behind his house. Three teens were seen inside the car.

“We encourage the other three - they certainly know who they are - to go ahead and contact us,” said Coeur d’Alene police Capt. Carl Bergh. “We’d like to draw this matter to a conclusion.”

Police have crisscrossed the county gathering evidence and arresting suspects in the killing. Local and state investigators spent Tuesday combing Victorino’s house and a 1983 Chevrolet Caprice they believe Scott drove from the scene.

Two knives and a shirt believed to have been worn by one of the assailants were found in the back yard of a Coeur d’Alene home. The suspected getaway car was found near the intersection of 10th Street and Walnut Avenue.

Several hundred dollars were recovered in the alley behind Victorino’s house.

Woffenden was arrested Monday afternoon when Kootenai County sheriff’s deputies surrounded a Post Falls home. Police said he later confessed to detectives that he was one of two teenagers inside Victorino’s house when the stabbing occurred.

Court documents accuse Woffenden of premeditated murder, or killing Victorino “sometime during the commission of the robbery,” said Lansing Haynes, chief deputy prosecutor.

A first-degree murder conviction carries the possibility of the death penalty.

Scott is accused of driving Woffenden and others to Victorino’s house and waiting outside while Victorino was robbed and killed, Haynes said.

A friend persuaded Scott to turn himself in to police after learning about his alleged involvement in Victorino’s murder. Detectives still were trying make arrangements with Scott’s attorney late Tuesday to interview the teen, Bergh said.

Scott’s attorney, Timothy Van Valin, refused to comment Tuesday afternoon as he left the jail. Van Valin told Magistrate Burton during Scott’s arraignment hearing that the teenager’s only previous arrest had been for petty theft.

If convicted, Scott faces life in prison.

Both teens are scheduled to have preliminary hearings within the next two weeks.

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