Gunman, co-defendants in Carlile murder-for-hire plead guilty

Sept. 16, 2015 Updated Wed., Sept. 16, 2015 at 2:34 p.m.

By Rachel Alexander rachela@spokesman.com (509) 459-5406

Timothy Suckow, the man accused of pulling the trigger in the murder-for-hire of South Hill businessman Doug Carlile pleaded guilty to federal murder charges Wednesday. Suckow pleaded guilty to murder for hire and conspiracy to commit murder for hire. The agreement included a recommended sentence of 30 years in prison. A trial for James Henrikson, the man accused of masterminding the December 2013 slaying over a North Dakota oil lease, is tentatively scheduled to begin trial in Spokane next month. Suckow will testify against Henrikson as part of his plea deal. Two co-defendants also pleaded guilty Wednesday, while another had a plea deal rejected by Judge Salvador Mendoza. Robert A. Delao, who introduced Henrikson to Suckow and gave Suckow the order to kill Carlile via text message, pleaded guilty to nine federal charges including murder for hire and conspiracy to commit murder at a separate hearing Wednesday morning. Prosecutors recommended a sentence of 14 to 17 years in prison and lifetime supervised release. Delao became emotional and choked back tears after Judge Mendoza asked him to explain why he was guilty of the crimes. “I made the call for him,” he said, referring to Henrikson, “and Douglas Carlile ended up murdered.” Lazaro T. Pesina, who drove Suckow to the Carlile house under the impression he was assisting in a robbery, pleaded guilty to interstate transportation in aid of racketeering. Prosecutors recommended a 12 year sentence. Another co-defendant, Todd Bates, was scheduled to plead guilty to charges related to other murders-for-hire Henrikson allegedly ordered, but said during questioning by Mendoza that he recalled being involved in a plot to commit assault, not murder. “The first thing that comes to my mind is that it was an assault,” he said, referring to a charge that he planned to kill Jay Wright, a rival truck driver, on Henrikson’s orders. Mendoza asked him to consult with his lawyer at a morning hearing but rejected the plea deal at a hearing Wednesday afternoon. Under the terms of the deal, Bates would have had a recommended sentence seven to 10 years. Delao and Pesina will be sentenced on Dec. 8.

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