Catalytic converter thief was alive when dragged behind truck and left in field, records say
After catching a man trying to steal his catalytic converter, Michael Campbell allegedly shot the would-be thief several times before tying him to the back of his truck and dragging him to a Lakewood field.
On Monday, Pierce County prosecutors charged Campbell, 54, with second-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping. Superior Court Judge Edmund Murphy ordered him held without bail pending an evaluation to determine whether he is competent to stand trial. Campbell was not brought to court from the Pierce County Jail.
The 40-year-old victim has not been publicly identified.
The incident took place about 3:45 a.m. Saturday in a parking lot near Sharondale Street SW and Halcyon Road SW.
Charging papers filed Monday morning give this account of the homicide:
A truck driver was woken by noise and spotted Campbell dragging something behind his Ford F-150 and through the parking lot to a large field surrounded by trees. He called 911 to report the suspicious activity and stayed on the phone with dispatchers to narrate what Campbell was doing.
Campbell stayed in the field for a minute or so, then returned to the parking lot, got in a smaller pickup truck and drove up the road. He then walked back to the parking lot.
An officer responded to the field within 14 minutes and found the victim’s body with two gunshot wounds.
“The victim was deceased and appeared to have several obvious signs of trauma to his body, some of which were consistent with having been dragged,” prosecutors wrote in charging papers.
Police found the victim’s pickup truck parked where it had been moved. As they were interviewing the truck driver about what he witnessed, Campbell drove by in his F-150. Officers pulled him over and took him into custody.
A large amount of blood was found in the parking lot, as well as in the victim’s truck. Campbell’s truck tires had grass on them consistent with the grass in the field, and inside the truck was a gun and rope matching what was used to tie up the victim, records say.
The truck driver recognized Campbell as someone he’d chatted with over the years and believed he lived in his truck. An employee at a nearby auto business told police Campbell had lived in his truck about two years and was paid by the business to “watch the property” during off hours, records say.
Campbell told detectives he woke up to find a man trying to steal his catalytic converter and fired a gun straight down at him. He said the victim crawled to his own pickup truck and tried to get in but fell to the ground.
“He lashed the victim’s hands above his head and tied him to the ball hitch on his F-150, then dragged him through the field,” according to charging papers. “The defendant further stated that the victim was still alive and talking as he was lashing him to the truck, and was still alive when he untied him and abandoned him in the field.”
Staff writer Alexis Krell contributed to this report.
This story was originally published June 14, 2021 at 12:00 PM.
