Okanogan man arrested on suspicion of murder after body found in Oroville on Saturday

A 70-year-old Okanogan man is facing a first-degree murder charge after Okanogan County deputies found a woman he’d been dating dead on Saturday evening.

Roy Rasmussen is in custody, according to a news release from the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office. Rasmussen is suspected in killing Siri Zosel, 46, of Oroville. Deputies responding to a report of a domestic dispute found Rasmussen and another unidentified man in a home on Westlake Road around 8:30 p.m. Saturday, along with Zosel’s body.

A friend of Zosel’s told police that she hadn’t been able to contact Zosel and went to the home, where Rasmussen “appeared defensive to her,” according to the news release. That friend’s husband went to the home and forced his way in, where he saw Zosel’s body, police said. The man was told by Rasmussen that Zosel had been dead for two days, according to police.

The Washington State Patrol Crime Lab is assisting the investigation. Anyone with information about the death is asked to call the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office at (509) 422-7232.