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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

3 arrested in Stevens County hammer slaying

Ashley Chappelle (left), Karysa and Daniell Jones were charged Friday with the brutal murder of Shane Christopher Rapp, who on March 30, 2017, was discovered partially decomposed in rural Stevens County. (Jonathan Glover / The Spokesman-Review)

COLVILLE – Three people have been charged with the hammer killing of a man in rural Stevens County as his children slept in a nearby car.

Sheriff’s deputies began investigating the death of 28-year-old Shane Christopher Rapp after his decomposing body was found in March beneath a pile of wooden pallets. A sheet was tied to his legs and his skull was smashed, according to court documents.

Rapp’s estranged wife, Ashley Chappelle, 25, gave a chilling account of the October 2016 killing, according to court documents. Her statement led investigators to also arrest Karysa Jones, 22, and her husband, Daniell Jones, 24.

The three appeared in court Monday dressed in striped jail clothes as a judge ordered them held on $500,000 bonds.

Chappelle began planning against Rapp after she watched his “interaction” with their daughter who had spilled some gasoline, according to documents. The episode scared her and led her to consider a divorce, according to documents.

She told her friend and co-worker Karysa Jones about Rapp’s behavior. Jones told her she “could take care of this.”

Court documents outline a murder plot that began with Chappelle luring Rapp to a friend’s house to use marijuana, play video games and watch television.

On the way, he rode in the back seat of the car with the couple’s sleeping children.

When they arrived at the Joneses’ house, Karysa and Daniell walked outside in the rain to greet them. Daniell took Rapp on a walk in a forested area to retrieve what Rapp was led to believe was a stash of marijuana, according to documents.

During their walk, Rapp went to shake Daniell Jones’ hand. That’s when Jones pulled the hammer from his back pocket and hit Rapp in the head, according to the account of investigators in court documents. He continued hitting him in the face “until he didn’t have one anymore.”

The two women stood outside the car with the sleeping children until Jones returned. Chappelle told investigators that when he arrived back at the car he had blood dripping from his right hand. He walked past the women and told his wife, Karysa, to “make me a sandwich,” according to documents.

Chappelle confessed that the killing was “all her fault,” but that she felt she had to protect her kids, according to court documents.

Stevens County prosecutor Lech Radzimski said while all three face the same charge of murder, Chappelle and Karysa Jones are accomplices.

Chappelle admitted to trying to cover up Rapp’s death, including writing a note and a check to herself, and using Rapp’s debit card.

Rapp’s body was found in March. Chappelle had not filed a missing persons report about her missing husband. Investigators last April arrested Daniell Jones in connection with Rapp’s death but dropped the charges.

Investigators arrested Chappelle on suspicion of burglary and 18 counts of identity theft in October. She had been in jail for more than a month when she decided to confess to her role in Rapp’s death, according to court documents.