Pullman woman killed, estranged husband arrested

A Pullman man is accused of killing his estranged wife in a mobile home and RV park, according to a Pullman Police news release.

Jacob E. Spray, 36, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder on Tuesday. Police responded to a 5:43 p.m. welfare check for a woman and found her with serious injuries, the news release said. She was pronounced dead on scene. Her identity will be released by the Whitman County Coroner.

According to Pullman Police Operations Commander Aaron Breshears, the Whitman County Fire Department is included in the investigation because there is evidence someone tried to light the home on fire.

Breshears said it took about 40 minutes for police to find the victim because the person who called in the wellness check was unsure of the exact address.

The caller was unable to identify the assailant, but information on scene led police to Spray, who officers traced to his home, where he tried to flee. Breshears said he also assaulted an officer and tried to take his gun.

Spray was treated at a local hospital for injuries he received at the time of the arrest. He was then booked into the Whitman County Jail around 7 the next morning.

Sevdy’s Modern View Mobile Court, where the attack occurred, is a collection of around a dozen RVs and mobile homes on the southwest area of Pullman’s Military Hill. By mid-morning Wednesday, officers remained outside the RV where the woman lived surveying the area with a drone.

Margot Buckley, the victim’s neighbor, said the woman often kept to herself and was usually “out and about” with her dog.

On Tuesday night, she didn’t hear a sound.

“I had no idea something had happened until I came out this morning to tape in front of my door,” she said.

Buckley was upset to hear the news of her neighbor’s death.

“I’ve been in domestic violence disputes myself. It’s so heartbreaking to have something like this happen so close,” she said.

The last murder conviction in Pullman was from 2015, when then 24-year-old Erik Luden killed his 58-year-old father, Virgil Luden. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Reporter Emma Epperly and Washington State University Edward R. Murrow journalism student Sabrina Vachris contributed to this report.