Man arrested in connection with suspicious death of woman in Mason County
A man has been arrested by Mason County Sheriff’s detectives in connection with the suspicious death of a woman whose body was found in the woods near a state park.
The man was arrested and booked into Mason County Jail on Wednesday on suspicion of second-degree manslaughter. The woman was Joanna Ruth Saunders, 29, of Spokane who the sheriff’s office said was “recently involved” with the Shelton homeless community.
Mason County deputies responded to a call at about 7:35 a.m. June 11 reporting a decomposing adult female body in a remote, wooded area near Schafer State Park north of Elma, according to sheriff’s office news release. Evidence from the scene suggested the body had likely been in the woods for at least a couple of weeks before its discovery.
More than a week later, deputies responded to a report on June 22 from a citizen who found a woman’s clothing and personal effects, according to the release. The items had been “dumped” in another remote, wooded area near Johns Prairie in Shelton, over 20 miles from where Saunders was found, according to the news release. Among the items, deputies discovered paperwork connected to Saunders.
In the weeks since, Mason County detectives have recovered video evidence and spoken with people who provided information about Saunders and may have been with her in the days leading up to her death, according to the news release.
At this time, the Mason County Sheriff’s Office has no reason to believe anyone else is responsible for Saunders’ death, according to the news release.
