Lacey police have arrested one of two men who they suspect killed a 36-year-old Kenmore man outside a motel in August. Arrest warrants were issued for Nicholas VanDuren, 32, and his fraternal twin, Alexander VanDuren on Monday in Thurston County Superior Court.
Prosecutors have charged both men with second-degree murder while armed with a deadly weapon.
In a Tuesday news release, Lacey police said they did not know where the brothers were. However, a Wednesday update indicated Alexander VanDuren was in custody. Police are still searching for Nicholas VanDuren.
The man who died was identified as Sean Shea, a 36-year-old Kenmore man. Shea’s body was found Aug. 30 at a motel on the 100 block of College Street Southeast, next to Interstate 5, The Olympian previously reported. Police responded to the scene at 9:26 p.m. after callers reported a man was lying in the parking lot behind the motel.
They found an unconscious man, later identified as Shea, with injuries to his head. Medics transported Shea to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia, where he died from his injuries.
In early September, Coroner Gary Warnock confirmed Shea died from blunt force injury to the head. He also determined his manner of death was a homicide.
Witnesses told police they saw two men involved in the disturbance leave the area in a gray Toyota Camry with temporary plates.
Police released images of the brothers in their Tuesday news release. One image shows Nicholas VanDuren with an ace of spades card tattoo on his right shoulder. Another image shows a 2016 Ford Fusion, with the license plate CEJ9093, that police believe he drives.
An image of Alexander VanDuren shows him with rectangular glasses and shaggier hair than his short-haired brother.
