Prosecutors have pressed additional murder charges against a 40-year-old Kent man believed to have murdered multiple victims after luring them into the woods with promises of gold.
Prosecutors charged Richard Bradley, already awaiting trial for murder and arson in two 2021 cases, with three additional charges of murder in December 2023.
Richard Bradley, 40, of Kent, pleaded not guilty to the new charges at his arraignments for two cases including a newly introduced murder case and an old arson case amended to include two murder charges.
Prosecutors filed a charge of murder in the first degree against Bradley on Dec. 5 for the death of Emilio Raul Maturin, reported missing in August of 2019, and amended the 2021 arson case on Dec. 8, adding two murder in the second degree charges for the deaths of Michael Goeman and Goeman’s son, Vance Lakey.
Bradley also holds a pending murder in the first degree charge for the death of Brandi Blake in May 2021.
In total, Bradley now faces two counts of murder in the first degree and two counts of murder in the second degree.
“Bradley has a common scheme: he tells an individual that he needs their help digging up gold, lures them out to a wooded area, alone with him, murders them, and buries [or] leaves their body deep in the park,” prosecutorial documents stated. “After completing his murder, the defendant takes possession of the victim’s vehicle and anything inside the vehicle, and is seen driving that vehicle in the hours [or] days after the victim is missing.”
According to documents, King County Sheriff’s Office investigators discovered the remains of Maturin and Blake at Game Farm Park, a community park in Auburn, and located the remains of Goeman and Lakey off an unmaintained county road near the 36800 block of 56th Place South in another wooded area.
King County Sheriff’s Office detectives initiated an investigation into Blake’s disappearance after Federal Way police contacted them regarding her missing person case on May 13, 2021.
Blake had not been seen or heard from by friends or family since May 5, 2021, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Her cellphone went straight to voicemail and she wasn’t responsive to messages on social media.
Through witness testimony, law enforcement learned that Blake met a man, Bradley, through a friend, and that Bradley had told Blake he had a large amount of gold he had stolen and had kept buried in the ground somewhere.
Blake left with Bradley on May 5 and was never seen again.
Witnesses saw Bradley driving Blake’s Ford Mustang after her disappearance.
Renton police located and detained Bradley on May 20, 2021, driving an RV. A witness identified a handgun and narcotics found in the RV as belonging to Blake.
King County Sheriff’s Office detectives discovered three unidentified male ribs while recovering the buried body of Blake in May 2021 at Game Farm Park. Investigators located Blake deceased, face down in a shallow grave.
In April 2022, DNA testing confirmed the ribs to belong to Maturin, who had been reported missing for two years.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, investigators learned through witness testimony that Bradley had also befriended Maturin, and told the same story about having buried gold and needing assistance.
Maturin’s roommate used his Google account to track his location after Maturin left with Bradley, according to the affidavit. His last known location was Game Farm Park.
Bradley was also seen driving Maturin’s vehicle after his disappearance.
Law enforcement discovered Goeman’s and Lakey’s bodies in April 2021. An autopsy found that both men had been killed using the same method.
Law enforcement found two small shovels next to the victims’ decaying bodies.
Bradley was seen driving the victims’ car and motorcycle in the days following their disappearance. According to witness testimony, he later attempted to pay someone to break into a storage lot and burn a vehicle belonging to the men.
Originally charged with arson in the second degree and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm in the case, King County prosecutors filed an order on Dec. 14 to amend the charges in Goeman’s and Lakey’s cases to include the two additional murder in the second degree charges to more “accurately [reflect] the defendant’s conduct.”
Bradley pleaded not guilty to the charges in Maturin’s murder case and the amended charges in Goeman’s and Lakey’s cases at an arraignment on Dec. 14.
The court scheduled Bradley’s next hearing for Jan. 12, 2024.
He will face a jury trial currently scheduled for Feb. 5, 2024, for all three cases, including Blake’s.
Bradley remains in custody, held without bail, as requested per the prosecutors.
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