Homeless squatters caught in Spokane Valley home

Two people were caught Monday evening squatting in an unoccupied home in Spokane Valley.

At about 6:20 p.m. Monday, Spokane Valley Sheriff’s deputies arrived to the residence in the 15700 block of East Broadway after a family member reported finding 18-year-olds Nicholas Tutt and Meaghan Stiverson inside, a sheriff’s office news release says. The home is currently under probate, and the family member found the two while checking on the home, according to the release.

Deputy Mark Gregory said the two thought the home was abandoned, and broke in through the back door hoping to “take possession of the property.” They put down blankets and moved furniture “with the intention of staying,” the release says. The pair told deputies they both recently moved from Iowa.

“It doesn’t sound like they were there for very long,” Gregory said.

Stiverson and Tutt were charged with residential burglary, a class B felony.