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

Four arrested in Lower South Hill homicide

Spokane police arrested four men Wednesday night in connection with the Jan. 25 homicide of Damien Stewart, 33. The suspects are Isaiah S. Freeman, 24; Christopher J. Hall, 34; Ricky A. Cox, 29 and Richard J. Richardson, 49. All four face charges of first-degree murder. Stewart was found dead in his apartment in the 500 block of South Hatch Street by his neighbor, according to a search warrant filed Sunday. Police found his apartment in disarray with signs of struggle. The floor was covered in personal belongings, and Stewart’s TV was face down on the floor. Stewart’s body had many cuts and abrasions, and police found a shoe print on his forehead and a knife blade under his hand. The Spokane County medical examiner said Stewart died from asphyxiation due to manual compression of his neck. The house his apartment is located in is well-known to police, with 111 calls for service in 2014. Many of those calls were for drug-related activity, police spokeswoman Monique Cotton said. A friend of Stewart’s told police that Stewart lived alone, but often allowed “street people” to stay with him. Stewart was not dating anyone and did not have problems with anyone, the friend said. The four men arrested Wednesday will appear in court Thursday afternoon. Detectives do not believe there are any other outstanding suspects in the homicide.
This story is developing and will be updated.