Coroner finally able to identify 2 Tri-Cities men burned in deadly rampage

The identity of a man at the center of a string of deaths and fires has been confirmed, along with one of his victims.

After looking at medical and dental records, the Benton County Coroner’s Office confirmed Ryan Kaufman, 43, was the man who died inside his burning truck in front of a West Richland car wash on Aug. 25.

They’re also certain that Emil “Bob” Zlatich Jr., 77, is the person found two hours earlier inside his burning home on the 21000 block of East Finley Road.

Zlatich, the former owner of Zip’s By The Cable Bridge, was the last of Kaufman’s suspected victims to be formally identified.

But how Kaufman and Zlatich died is not yet clear.

Benton County Coroner Bill Leach said they were still waiting for test results to determine that.

Similarly, Leach is waiting on blood test results for Kaufman’s parents, Vickie, 68, and Dan, 75, before he can officially rule on their deaths.

Initial reports the day of the rampage indicated they were found shot at home in east Kennewick. Dan Kaufman was the retired Kennewick city engineer and Vickie was a longtime educator in the Tri-Cities.

Also still unclear is when Ryan Kaufman’s parents died — before or after he apparently attacked his neighbors, the Zlatiches, in Finley and burned down their house and his own.

Multiple investigations

Different law enforcement agencies are investigating the different crimes stretching over 20 miles from Finley east of Kennewick to where Kaufman died in West Richland.

No new information was released this week on the cases.

The Regional Special Investigations Unit is investigating Ryan Kaufman’s death in his burning truck after four officers shot at him. The unit investigates officer-involved shootings.

Kennewick detectives are investigating the deaths of his parents and the break-ins and fires set at two union halls that day.

And Benton County sheriff’s detectives are investigating Zlatich’s death, the shooting and wounding of his son, the fire at their home, as well as a series of fires that Ryan Kaufman is believed to have sparked along the highway as he fled.

Sheriff’s Lt. Erik Magnusson told the Herald this week that at this point information is slow in coming as they wait for records and test results to return.

And he said there’s no new information about why Kaufman was trying to break into his neighbor’s home or why he likely set the house fires.

He said all accounts indicate Kaufman only occasionally talked with his neighbors and they had not argued, Magnusson said.

Deadly rampage

From police and witness accounts, the deadly day appeared to start during a reported break-in at the Zlatich home in Finley just before 4 a.m.

Bob Zlatich Jr. was found dead inside his burning home, while his 58-year-old son, Emil “Bobby” Zlatich III, was discovered by deputies in the backyard with gunshot wounds. And his son Bo Zlatich also was there but wasn’t hurt.

Law enforcement officers began searching for Ryan Kaufman, who had lived next to the Zlatich family for almost 20 years. His house was burning and his truck was missing.

Kennewick police have since linked a shotgun Ryan Kaufman used to break open the doors at two Kennewick union halls that morning to the deaths of his parents.

Ryan Kaufman worked as an electrician and was a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. A union official later told the Herald they’d never had a problem with Kaufman and were baffled by what happened.

Shortly before 6:30 a.m., Kaufman’s 1973 orange Dodge pickup was spotted by Washington State Patrol troopers and officers heading toward West Richland. He was wearing “a ballistic helmet and gear” and armed with an assault rifle, said initial reports.

Kaufman reportedly was swerving and then flames erupted and the truck came to a stop near the car wash. He then shot several rounds from the truck about 6:30 a.m., said police.

Four officers from three different police agencies returned fire. The truck continued to burn out of control with Kaufman inside.

It wasn’t until several hours later, shortly after noon that the Kaufmans were found at their home. Ryan Kaufman had tried to set their house on fire, as well, police said.

This story was originally published September 10, 2021 at 12:31 PM.