Murder suspect ordered held

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SANDPOINT — A Washington state man accused of ambushing a North Idaho man and shooting him to death made an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court on Monday.

Neal Aaron Mouser is charged with first-degree murder. Senior Magistrate Court Judge Debra Heise sustained Mouser's $1 million bail and appointed a public defender to represent him during a videoconference hearing, court records show.

Mouser, 59, is accused of laying in wait in order to kill Brandon Vern Hurst, 38, after he was lured to a remote location in the Upper Pack River Valley on Nov. 21, 2020. Hurst's remains were discovered by a passerby on Caribou Creek Road in December of last year.

Cantrip Velite Gatens is accused of luring Hurst to the location where he was shot claiming she needed help with her vehicle. She is charged with conspiracy to commit murder.

Scott Thomas Kachel, 62, is charged with being an accessory to Hurst's killing by dumping his body down a steep embankment. The place where Hurst's body was found is linked by trails which connect to Kachel's property, according to court documents.

Gatens, 28, accused Hurst of battering her in the weeks leading up to the killing. She also accused Hurst of being a police informant. Hurst denied both allegations, court records indicate.

Gatens is being held in lieu of $750,000 bail, while Kachel is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail. Mouser was apprehended in Spokane and was being held on fugitive charges.

Gatens' boyfriend, who appears to be a cooperating witness, told Bonner County sheriff's investigators that he learned of plans to kill Hurst and unsuccessfully attempted to talk Gatens and Mouser out of it, a police affidavit said. The boyfriend was being held in another jurisdiction when he was interviewed by investigators, but it was not clear Monday if he remains in custody.

Preliminary hearings in the cases against Gatens and Kachel are set for March 3. A preliminary hearing in Mouser's case is scheduled for Feb. 10, court records show.

Investigators obtained search warrants for social media and wireless phone accounts, in addition to a local sober living facility where Gatens was living at the time of her arrest, records show.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com or followed on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.