A man living in the home of a missing woman reported hearing mysterious noises in the attic and crawl space.
Marvin Willey, the missing woman’s son, was so scared that he armed himself and called police.
Responding officers ended up arresting him, however, after realizing that he was a convicted felon and wasn’t allowed to possess firearms, according to court documents.
Prosecutors charged Marvin Willey, 63, in Island County Superior Court May 14 with unlawful possession of a firearm in the second degree. He was granted a continuance in court on May 26.
His elderly mother, Betty Tews, was last seen in June 2011. Detective Rick Felici with the Island County Sheriff’s Office said the case is still open and unsolved.
Tews was 81 years old and medically fragile when she disappeared.
Tews’ other son, Raymond Willey, was questioned by deputies about her disappearance and then suddenly left the state in 2011.
Before she went missing, Tews sought protection orders against Raymond Willey, who lived with her at her Sonic Lane residence. She accused him in court papers of pointing a gun at her head.
Raymond Willey was never charged in connection with his mother’s disappearance. Marvin Willey moved from out of state and into his mother’s house after Tews disappeared.
In October 2012, Marvin Willey called 911 to report a possible burglary at the home. He reported that he was armed with a handgun for his protection, but was told by the dispatcher to leave the gun inside and go outside to meet the officers, court records state.
He told the officers that he thought people were in the attic and the crawl space. The officers checked, but didn’t find anyone.
The officers later discovered that Willey is a convicted felon out of South Carolina, which would disqualify him from owning a firearm. Court documents show that he was convicted in federal court of bank embezzlement in 1979 and was sentenced to six months in prison.
Deputies returned to the Tews house and confiscated a handgun and a shotgun from the home; they arrested Willey, the report states.
Marvin Willey could not be reached for comment.
