Church members help investigators in Stevens County homicide

Members of the church attended by Timothy Roberts helped in the investigation of his homicide in Stevens County in April, even finding his body in a creek a few days after Roberts’ home was burned down.

His step-grandson, Morgan L. Beadle, has been arrested following a manhunt and faces charges of first-degree murder. In May, a judge signed an order allowing Beadle to be involuntarily medicated in the hopes of making him competent to stand trial.

Sheriff’s deputies were called to Roberts’ home at 859 South Fork Mill Creek Road near Colville on April 15. A neighbor reported that the house was on fire and that he had encountered Beadle at the scene, who claimed that shots had been fired, court records say.

Deputies spoke to Beadle, who said he saw two men leave Roberts’ home in a green van. He said he went inside while it was on fire to look for his grandfather and said he thought drug dealers had killed Roberts, according to court documents. He left the area before investigators had probable cause to arrest him.

The pastor of Faith Tabernacle Church, where Roberts attended services, called deputies later that day to report that Roberts didn’t attend a meeting as scheduled. According to court documents, the Rev. Jeff Mauer told deputies that Beadle was “unstable” and had threatened to kill Roberts twice in recent weeks, according to court documents.

The day after the fire, Mauer called deputies to report finding clothes and papers with Roberts’ name on them on the side of the road. The deputy who collected them reported that the clothes, believed to be Beadle’s, smelled like gasoline, according to court documents. A lighter also was recovered.

In his initial interview, Beadle reportedly told deputies that while he was searching for the green van he had stopped and thrown his clothes and other items out of the car, court documents state.

On April 18, Mauer and several church members reported finding Roberts’ body in a creek downstream from his home. The medical examiner said that Roberts’ clothing smelled like gasoline and he showed evidence of smoke inhalation. His throat was slit and he had numerous stab wounds to his neck and head, according to court documents.

A competency hearing for Beadle is scheduled for August.