The Murder of Doug Carlile

As I began researching this case I was left thinking about the old television show “World's Dumbest Criminals” and had to wonder if these idiots would not have made the list. I jokingly tell my husband that I watch true crime docudramas so I know what NOT to do in a murder or a crime. It is not like this crime was committed long before DNA was available or before crime scenes were preserved as they are now. No, this crime was committed in 2013 by a group of men who seemingly acted as if they had their own mob group. They had a “boss” and everything. Let us just say however that if this was like the mob families and groups they would have either a) been taken out by a rival family a very long time ago or b) there would surely have been a smarter boss in charge who would have done the taxpayers a service and taken these guys out on his own for their own stupidity.

On December 15, 2013, around 7 pm, Doug Carlile and his wife, Elberta were returning to their Spokane Washington after going to evening church services. Elberta apparently went inside ahead of Doug and was beginning to head upstairs. As Doug was entering the home a man pushed his way in the house with him. Elberta made a bee line upstairs as she heard her husband arguing with the intruder and just as she was going to call 911 she heard “five or six shots” ring out. She hid inside a closet and called the police. When officers arrived they found Doug's body laying in his kitchen riddled with bullets. Immediately Elberta told investigators that a man by the name of James Henrikson was responsible. Several family members and friends of Doug would also relay this name to authorities.

So, who was James Henrikson and why was everyone so convinced that he was responsible for Doug Carlile's death? It seems that Doug and James were partners, along with a few other men. They owned some land in North Dakota that was said to be rich in oil. Henrikson also appears to have owned several trucking companies in that area also. By the end of 2013 Henrikson's life was not going so well. While police, family and friends of a former employee, K.C. Clarke suspected him of Clarke's disappearance and likely murder, nothing could be proven. Clarke had gone missing in 2012 and his mother had openly and publicly accused Henrikson of being involved. Henrikson went so far as to file a defamation suit against Clarke's mother but he lost. Then by the summer of 2013 the IRS and Homeland Security were looking into Henrikson for fraud and money laundering. At some point the FBI and the ATF joined in on the investigation but I was not clear as to if this occurred before or after Doug Carlile was murdered.

By the end of 2013 the relationship between Carlile and Henrikson was unraveling. Henrikson would apparently go to Carlile and demand $400,000 saying he owend him. At this point both men began trying to cut the other out of their partnership. Henrikson would allege that the partnership had soured because Carlile was not just cheating him out of money but not paying their employees. He said this in the context of being questioned about Doug's murder. He denied being involved of course, but it appears he could not stop himself from speaking bad of the man. Then again Doug Carlile had told his side of the story to many people, that is what had led investigators to look into him in the first place. Whether Henrikson's allegations against Carlile were true is uncertain but I must say that I find it interesting these were his claims against Carlile when after an investigation it was discovered that it was Henrikson who had a reputation for fraud, for not paying employees, and using false identifications basically for years and all over the country.

Meanwhile at the crime scene in Spokane investigators were finding evidence it appeared left and right. A black leather glove was found in the backyard and thought to be related to the crime. Neighbors had also reported seeing a white “cargo” van in the neighborhood, not just that night but at other times too that seemed to drive slowly and be suspicious. Investigators were able to find surveillance video that showed this van in the area the night of the murder. While a license plate could not be seen (one witness said they noticed a paper plate), they were able to identify it as a 1995 Chevy extended van. There were few of them registered in the area but one belonged to a company called IRS Environmental. IRS Environmental dealt with removing toxic things such as Lead and Asbestos. They had an employee named Timothy Suckow that worked there.

Suckow had an extensive criminal history that included convictions for burglary. While investigators were still looking into James Henrikson in North Dakota, a subsequent investigation was taking place in Spokane. On January 14, 2014 while investigators were raiding Henrikson's home they were also arresting Timothy Suckow and beginning searches on his home and vehicles. Henrikson was also arrested that day, not for murder, but for possessing a firearm as a felon.

DNA had come back on the glove found in the backyard of the Carlile home and it was a match to Suckow. A list was found in Suckow's truck that had things such as “gloves,” “wheelman,” and “practice with pistol.” Investigators knew that somehow Suckow had to be connected to Henrikson but they had to figure out how. This investigation was far from over and in reality they only had a third of the people who would ultimately be arrested and convicted for this and other crimes. While you may already believe some of the mistakes that were made by the criminals are almost laughable in their stupidity, as they say in show business “You ain't seen nothing yet.”

Due to the fact that this was thought to be an Interstate Murder for Hire case, federal courts took jurisdiction. Because of this eventually they were allowed to also not just bring in evidence, but bring charges related to the disappearance and alleged murder of K. C. Clarke. By the time it was over not only were Henrikson and Suckow behind bars but so were four other men. A man by the name of Robbie Wahrer was alleged to be the driver of the van that left the Carlile home. Lazaro Pesina was alleged to have been with both Wahrer and Suckow at the scene and went to the door with Suckow but had not entered the home. Both he and Wahrer would claim that they believed this to be only a home invasion and knew nothing about it planning to be a murder. Then there was Rob Delao and Todd Bates who were also arrested in this crime.

Investigators pieced together what had happened in both the disappearance of K.C. Clarke and the murder of Doug Carlile with not just the evidence but with how fast the defendants all apparently decided to sing and rat each other out. All six of the men had extensive criminal history and were known by investigators either locally or federally in either Washington State or North Dakota, or both.

Through the investigation they were able to determine that Rob Delao, who lived in North Dakota but was from Spokane and in fact had a girlfriend and child living there, had apparently been the first to be associated with Henrikson. It appears that Delao, Bates and Suckow would all refer to his as “The Boss.” Delao would describe himself as Henrikson's “right hand man.” Todd Bates apparently was the next to come into the mix. He was described as the “muscle” or the “enforcer” although it seems that Bates did very little of either. When Henrikson had apparently discovered that K.C. Clarke was intending to start up his own rival trucking business and potentially take money from him it was said that Henrikson contacted Delao who contacted Bates. This is where Suckow came into play. Bates and Suckow had done prison time together previously and had kept in touch and remained friends. Bates contracted Suckow to kill K.C. Clarke for $2,000. Suckow would later confess that he went to North Dakota and killed Clarke on the “say” of Henrikson, who he allegedly also spoke to directly, as well as Delao. According to Suckow Clarke was killed and then buried. He took investigators to the supposed area but the body could not be found. There was evidence of the payout Suckow received and authorities felt confident they could collaborate Suckow's story.

Then in late 2013 it was said that Henrikson once again decided that someone needed to die. This time it was Doug Carlile and just like the first murder the chain of command made it down to Suckow, who by the way already lived and worked in Spokane. According to Suckow he was basically told to get rid of Carlile and that he would be paid the same amount as he had with the other. Suckow would say that he had planned the invasion several weeks prior but after going to the home discovered that Carlile was not home that weekend and was visiting family.

Suckow would claim that he was not comfortable committing the murder, nor was he comfortable doing it alone so he recruited Pesina and Wahrer. Suckow would back the two men in their claims that they had no idea that a murder was going to occur and apparently investigators could not prove otherwise. So how were investigators able to prove that what Suckow claimed was true? A phone search was done and there were apparently calls between James Henrikson and Timothy Suckow. I am sure there were calls between Henrikson and Delao or even Bates that could be found also, but the important point was to show a relationship between Henrikson and Suckow, which the calls did. Authorities also found a multitude of evidence linking Suckow and Delao, not just showing they had a relationship but that they were plotting to kill Doug Carlile. They found hundreds of text messages on Delao's phone detailing the plot and found emails specifically between Delao and Suckow that included pictures of Doug Carlile, his house and his vehicle. One particular text was sent to Delao from Suckow after the murder that simply said “Tell the boss to watch the news.”

Because of all of the twists and turns and all of the participants it was difficult to get specifics on trials and in some cases what each person received as far as justice. Because the case was prosecuted at a federal level searches had to be done on federal prisons, although little specifics are given there. In the end all six men were either convicted or pleaded guilty. I can say for certain Hendrikson took his case to trial. Delao, Suckow and Bates all testified against him for both the murders of K.C. Clarke and Doug Carlile. He was convicted on eleven counts, two of which were murder and he was given “multiple” life sentences. Timothy Suckow received a sentence of thirty years and shows a scheduled release in the year 2040. Lazaro Pesina received a twelve year sentence while get away driver, Robbie Wahrer received ten years. I could not find Wahrer in either the federal prison or a state prison system so I cannot say where he is at the current time.

Robert Delao initially struck a deal with the prosecutors to testify against Henrikson and receive a sentence of 14-17 years but the judge rejected that deal. The judge indicated that he felt that Delao's past record was of such that the deal made did not warrant enough time. It was said that he and his lawyers would have to decide if they would continue to plead guilty or take the case to trial. It appears as if they decided to allow the judge to decide his sentence and research shows that in June of 2016 he received a twenty-two year sentence. However, like Wahrer I was unable to find Delao in any system. Todd Bates was the last to be sentenced, in August of 2016. He received a sentence of eight years. There were a few Todd Bates listed in the federal prison system but it looks as if he is set to be released in 2021.

In the end these criminals hung themselves between not just their talking but the fact that none of them seemed to know how to keep lists in their head or prevent paper and phone trails. It always amazes me how fast these “big, bad men” are so intimidating and evil until they are behind bars and they roll faster than anyone else. Sure, Hendrikson had threatened Carlile, several people had even heard it. Even Carlile apparently told everyone who would listen that if something happened to him Hendrikson would be responsible. Now, in the end it was the DNA match to Timothy Suckow from the glove found at the scene is what connected him to the crime. Then of course it did not take long for investigators to link him back to Hendrikson. But, even if that glove had not been found it is likely it would have all come out in the end. Stupid people, do stupid things and then they get caught.