Community Police & Fire

Family member arrested in homicides discovered after fire at Gig Harbor home

Pierce County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested a 25-year-old man on suspicion of killing two people found dead inside a home on 14th Avenue NW on April 8.

The suspect was the son of one of the victims and brother of the other, Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Deputy Carly Cappetto said in a video posted to the sheriff’s office website.

“The motive behind the double homicide is still being investigated,” Cappetto said. “There are no other suspects outstanding.”

Deputies arrested the suspect around 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 20, on the 9300 block of Washington Blvd. SW in Lakewood. They booked him into the Pierce County Jail on suspicion of two counts of first degree murder and one count of first degree arson.

Pierce County prosecutors will determine whether and how to charge the suspect.

The sheriff’s office SWAT team and its Special Investigations Unit conducted the arrest. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Pierce County Fire Marshal’s Office assisted in the investigation.

Investigators found the remains of Oliverio Huitron-Rosalez, 64, and Alejandro Huitron Campos, 31, both of Gig Harbor, after firefighters put out the April 8 fire. Cappetto confirmed on the day of the fire that at least one of the victims “did not die from the explosion or fire and it was not a natural cause of death.”

The Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office later ruled that Huitron-Rosalez and Huitron Campos died due to gunshot wounds to the head. The office ruled the deaths to be homicides.

Investigators at the scene of a fire on 14th Avenue NW on Wednesday, April 9. Photo by Vince Dice