$1M murder warrant issued for Tri-Cities man suspected in fiery death of his wife
Sheriff’s deputies are searching for a Kennewick man after a body believed to be his wife was found in their home after it was destroyed by a fire Monday.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday afternoon that detectives have probable cause for the arrest of Brian L. Wilcox, 68, on suspicion of first-degree murder and first-degree arson.
Court documents show investigators believe the woman whose body was found after the fire was his wife Kathy Lou Ellen Wilcox, 72.
Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Shea-Brown set bail at $1 million.
Court documents state that deputies arrived at a residential fire in the 1405 S. Elm Street just after 10:30 a.m. on Monday.
They noticed a blue Chevy Cobalt was parked along a fence near the home when they arrived. Their son Jerry Wilcox arrived on the scene and confirmed his parents Brian and Kathy Wilcox live there.
According to the documents he told deputies that he tried to call his parents on their cellphones, but both phones went straight to voicemail.
He also identified the Cobalt as his father’s car and said he found it suspicious because his father always parked in the driveway and never in front of the house. He said his mother’s blue SUV was not there, said documents.
Deputies obtained video from a neighboring house, which showed a blue SUV leave the Wilcox home shortly before the fire was seen. Other family members said they had not heard from Kathy that day, and had not been able to reach either Brian or Kathy by phone.
Investigators then contacted Bank of America, where their son said they shared an account, and found footage of Wilcox driving the blue SUV into the parking lot of the bank at 10:36 a.m., the same time as the 911 call reporting the fire.
The video shows Wilcox walk into the bank alone and spoke with staff, then left in the SUV, said the documents.
Their son was shown photos from the bank and confirmed the man in the video was his father, and that the vehicle belonged to Kathy Wilcox.
The documents also show the body of a woman consistent with the description of Kathy Wilcox was found in the kitchen.
Investigators also noticed the house smelled of gasoline. A partially melted object that investigators believe to be a plastic gas container was found in the kitchen.
Investigators also believe that gun safes in the home were emptied before the fire.
Wilcox was last seen on Monday, April 25, driving a 4-door, blue 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport with Washington license plate BIP2617, said Lt. Jason Erickson.
An autopsy is scheduled at 8 a.m. Wednesday to help confirm the identify of the woman and determine how she died.
This story was originally published April 26, 2022 at 5:59 PM.
