A defense attorney for a Vancouver man accused of killing a clerk at Sifton Market and setting fire to the building in January 2017 argues that a drug dealer called “Zip” is responsible for the crime.
Defense attorney John Terry told jurors Tuesday that the slaying was not carried out by Mitchell Heng — seen in store surveillance footage at the time of the Jan. 15 killing — but rather the unseen methamphetamine dealer.
Heng, 24, is on trial in Clark County Superior Court for first-degree murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree arson in the death of 47-year-old Amy Marie Hooser.
During opening statements Tuesday morning, Terry said much of the state’s evidence will not be contested, but he said it won’t give the full picture of what happened that morning.
His narrative that followed elicited audible tsk-tsks and a laugh of disbelief from Hooser’s family and supporters seated in the gallery.
It is unclear whether authorities ever identified or spoke to a man with the nickname Zip.
“I cannot comment on the existence of, or defense theory based on, Zip,” Deputy Prosecutor Aaron Bartlett said in an email after court.
In his opening statement, Deputy Prosecutor Kelly Ryan walked jurors through the timeline of the crime.
Shortly after 5 a.m., Hooser arrived at work and set about opening the market, located at 13412 N.E. Fourth Plain Blvd. Not 30 minutes later, she was killed by Heng, according to Ryan.
Heng arrived at the store about 10 minutes after opening. He and Hooser are seen on store surveillance footage walking to the deli prep area, where they go off camera. There were no functioning cameras in that area of the store, Ryan said.
Prosecutors say they believe Heng attacked Hooser, knocking her unconscious. Minutes later, he’s seen on camera emerging from the deli area with blood on his shirt, Ryan said. Hooser doesn’t follow.
Surveillance footage, described by Ryan, shows Heng walk to a beverage case and select a soda; he takes a few sips. He then walks to the register area and grabs cigarettes, a lighter and coffee filters, before returning to the deli area. It appears he used the coffee filters to start a fire. Heng is again seen on camera unsuccessfully trying to access a safe, as the building fills with smoke. The cameras eventually cut out.
But what’s not seen on surveillance footage, the defense argued, is the missing puzzle piece.
Terry, the defense attorney, spoke of what he called a “drug culture” at Sifton Market and Hooser and Heng’s involvement in it. He said because there were no working cameras in the back, drug deals were regularly carried out there. Terry told the jury Hooser used methamphetamine and claimed she had a lethal amount in her system when she died. A methamphetamine pipe was also recovered with her belongings, he said.
Heng — who sold marijuana and cocaine — came to the market to sell drugs to Hooser. She would then resell some of the product and give him his cut. She had the same arrangement with Zip for methamphetamine, Terry said.
Zip was already in the back of the store when Heng arrived, Terry argued. He wasn’t seen on store cameras because he entered through a back window.
Hooser was in debt to Zip, Terry told the jury, so when he saw her give money to Heng, he became upset. Zip attacked Hooser in front of Heng, splattering blood on Heng’s shirt. Zip then ordered Heng to rob the store and burn down the building, Terry said.
Heng tried to reason with Zip and offered him money, but Zip wouldn’t listen. He threatened Heng and his family. Fearing for his safety, Heng did as he was told and naively hoped Zip took Hooser with him after the fire started, Terry told the jury.
“Mitchell Heng did not attack (Hooser). He did not murder her. He is not guilty,” Terry said.
The three-alarm fire destroyed the four-unit Sifton Plaza, which also housed a barber shop, pet supply store and pet grooming business. Fire investigators determined two fires had been set, Ryan, the prosecutor, told the jury.
Hooser’s body was located that afternoon in the deli prep area under rubble. An autopsy found she died of blunt-force trauma to the head and smoke inhalation, and her death was ruled a homicide by the Clark County medical examiner.
Toxicology reports that would have shown whether Hooser had drugs in her system were not made public before the trial.
Heng was identified as the suspect Jan. 19 from the store’s recovered surveillance footage. Ryan told the jury Heng’s apartment was only two blocks from the market.
When contacted by detectives, Heng said he was out all night in Portland and stopped at the market to get snacks that morning. He didn’t hear about the fire, he said, until later. However, in subsequent interviews, Heng admitted that Hooser invited him to the store for drugs. His story changed again when he admitted to setting the fire, Ryan said. He alleged Hooser owed him money.
Blood found in Heng’s vehicle later came back as a match to Hooser. And in recorded calls from the Clark County Jail, Heng admitted to selling Hooser drugs and knowing which store cameras didn’t work so he could carry out drug sales, Ryan told the jury. He also apparently talked to his brother days before trial and instructed him to tell witnesses to get their stories straight.
Heng’s trial, expected to last about 2 1/2 weeks, continues Wednesday with state’s witnesses.
