February 7, 2018 at 4:49 p.m.
5 charged in Valliere murder case
Complaint alleges victim was killed outside Mercer
5 charged in Valliere murder case
Two felony charges have been filed against Richard F.A. Allen, 27, of Lac du Flambeau, Evan T. Oungst, 27, of Arbor Vitae, Curtis A. Wolfe, 26, of Lac du Flambeau, James B. Lussier, 19, of Arbor Vitae and Joseph D. Lussier, 26, of Lac du Flambeau in connection with the murder of Wayne M. Valliere, Jr., the state's attorney general Brad Schimel announced Wednesday morning.
All five defendants have been charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree intentional homicide (as a party to a crime and while armed with a dangerous weapon) and hiding a corpse, according to a Department of Justice press release. The cases will be heard in Iron County Circuit Court and the DOJ's criminal litigation unit will prosecute. Assistant attorneys general Richard DuFour and Chad Verbeten will serve as lead prosecutors. DuFour filed the charges Wednesday morning.
The first charge is a class A felony, punishable by up to life in prison upon conviction, while the second is a class G felony which carries a maximum penalty of up to a $10,000 fine and 10 years in prison. The "armed with a dangerous weapon" enhancer could add up to five years to any prison sentence while the repeater enhancer could add up to six years additional prison time.
Oungst and James Lussier are also facing charges in Vilas County in connection with Valliere Jr.'s death. In those cases, they are accused of lying to Vilas County sheriff's detectives during the investigation.
The charges come over a month after Valliere's body was found.
According to the criminal complaints, Valliere Jr. was last seen alive Dec. 22 and was officially reported missing on Christmas Day. He subsequently became the subject of a missing persons investigation led by the DOJ and numerous other law enforcement agencies.
His body was eventually located Jan. 1 in a rural area near Mercer.
According to the criminal complaints, investigators believe Valliere Jr. was killed during the early morning hours of Dec. 22 on Swamp Lake Road just north of Mercer.
According to the complaints, some of the defendants told investigators Allen repeatedly flashed a handgun while the group was traveling by minivan to the Mercer area and Valliere was aware that the other men intended to kill him. The complaints also include a reference to the alleged Native Soldier gang and state that some of the defendants indicated to investigators they suspected Valliere Jr. was a confidential police informant.
According to statements made by some of the defendants, when the vehicle stopped Allen beat Valliere Jr. and then shot him in the face. At that point, Joseph Lussier took the same gun and shot Valliere several more times as he lay in the road, they told police. All five men then hid the body on the side of a berm just off the road. Oungst eventually led investigators to the body.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Stier of the University of Wisconsin Hospital performed the autopsy and listed a preliminary cause of death as multiple gunshot wounds. The manner of death was homicide, he added.
In total, Dr. Stier identified eight gunshot wounds, two to the head and neck areas, two to the upper back, one to the lateral back, one to the mid-back, and two to the lower left back/buttock, the complaint states.
Investigators recovered a number of items from the scene, the complaint notes. Among the items recovered were four 9mm shell casings. Also recovered were samples of blood-stained snow found in the roadway and the rear sight of a handgun.
Investigators recovered the suspected murder weapon, a 9mm semi-automatic handgun missing its rear sight, wrapped in a red bandana, from the home of one of Wolfe's friends.
According to the complaint, Wolfe admitted to hiding the weapon at a friend's house.
The weapon had been reported stolen in a burglary in Oneida County, the complaint states.
In addition, a search warrant executed on Oungst's vehicle resulted in the recovery of a part of a box of ammunition of the same brand allegedly used in the murder, the complaint states.
Allen is being held in the Iron County Jail on a $1 million cash bond. Oungst, Wolfe and Joseph Lussier are being held in the Vilas County Jail. James Lussier remains at large. An arrest warrant was issued by Vilas County Judge Neal A. Nielsen III after he failed to appear at an adjourned initial appearance Jan. 23 on a misdemeanor charge of resisting or obstructing an officer for allegedly lying to investigators early in the investigation.
A DOJ spokeswoman could not say when the three defendants being held in Vilas County would be transferred to Iron County or when initial appearances would be scheduled.
Jamie Taylor may be reached via email at jamie@rivernews online.com.
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