E-FILED IN COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE PIERCE COUNTY, WASHINGTON October 11 2011 10:59 AM

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SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON FOR PIERCE COUNTY STATE OF WASHINGTON, Plaintiff, vs. MTHULISI BHALA NDLOVU, CAUSE NO. 11-1-04138-9

KEVIN STOCK COUNTY CLERK

DECLARATION FOR DETERMINATION OF PROBABLE CAUSE

Defendant.

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PHILIP K. SORENSEN, declares under penalty of perjury:

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That I am a deputy prosecuting attorney for Pierce County and I am familiar with the police report and/or investigation conducted by the BONNEY LAKE POLICE DEPARTMENT, incident number BL11002565; That the police report, oral reports of Bonney Lake Detectives Brian Byerley and Robert Kocher and Lakewood Detective Bryan Johnson, and/or investigation provided me the following information; That in Pierce County, Washington, on or about the 8th day of October, 2011, the defendant, MTHULISI BHALA NDLOVU, did commit the crime of murder. On October 9, 2011 at 1100 hours NDLOVU walked into Bonney Lake Police headquarters and reported that his girlfriend of three years, Mary Mushapaidzi, was missing. NDLOVU told investigators that she left for a run from their Bonney Lake residence at 5:30 that morning and failed to return. Officers accompanied NDLOVU back to the residence, a duplex in the 4700 block of North Island Drive. NDLOVU told police that he left for his job at 1:00 a.m., Sunday, October 9, and returned by 5:30 a.m., at which time Mushapaidzi was just leaving for the run. When she did not return after several hours he notified police. Officers at the scene noted that it smelled as if plastic had been burned. NDLOVU initially stated he had burned something on the stove in the kitchen. Later NDLOVU said he had been burning junk mail on the garage floor. Police spoke with the neighbor who lives in the other half of NDLOVUS duplex. That neighbor reported hearing a loud banging from NDLOVU unit at approximately 11:30 p.m., Saturday, October 8. A second neighbor saw Mushapaidzis vehicle arrive at the home Saturday night at approximately the same time. The neighbor heard yelling and what sounded like someone being beaten with a bat. The neighbor elected not to call police because he did not hear gunshots. A third neighbor reported hearing NDLOVUS truck leave the residence at about 1:30 a.m., Sunday, October 9. Officers spoke with Mushapaidzis eight year old son who lives in the home. The boy said that he had gone to bed at about 10:00 p.m. Saturday evening. Sometime after that he heard his mother yell for help. The boy later said he may have been dreaming. A search warrant was obtained for NDLOVUS residence. Officers saw blood streaks on a stairway leading from the kitchen to the garage. Officers used forensic techniques to determine that blood DECLARATION FOR DETERMINATION OF PROBABLE CAUSE -1
Office of the Prosecuting Attorney 930 Tacoma Avenue South, Room 946 Tacoma, WA 98402-2171 Main Office (253) 798-7400

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and signs of cleanup were present in the kitchen and garage. In the garage officers found a burn barrel. In the barrel were burned human remains. Investigators also located a pair of long handled pruning shears. The handles had been purposefully separated and it appeared that at least one of the handles had been used as a striking tool on Mushapaizdi. The Pierce County Medical Examiner indicated that the female victim suffered several large lacerations to the head consistent with blunt force trauma and was deceased prior to being burned. Police arrested NDLOVU. NDLOVU eventually told investigators that late Saturday night, October 8, he and Mushapaidzi argued about dirty dishes. NDLOVU said Mushapaidzi struck him in the face with her purse. NDLOVU said he became enraged and knocked Mushapaidzi to the ground. He climbed on top of her and punched her several times. He said it was possible that he tried to strangle her and struck her with the handle of the pruning shears, but he couldnt remember. NDLOVU said that at some point he realized Mushapaidzi was dead. He fashioned a wire harness that he used to drag her body into the garage and place her in a metal barrel. He left for work at about 1:30 a.m., Sunday morning. He returned at about 5:30 a.m. NDLOVU said that he went into the garage, put charcoal into the burn barrel and lit it in an effort to destroy the body. Apparently the burning took place inside the garage with the garage door shut. Investigators saw that all the smoke detectors in the residence had been disabled. I DECLARE UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY UNDER THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON THAT THE FOREGOING IS TRUE AND CORRECT. DATED: October 11, 2011 PLACE: TACOMA, WA

/s/ PHILIP K. SORENSEN PHILIP K. SORENSEN, WSB# 16441

DECLARATION FOR DETERMINATION OF PROBABLE CAUSE -2

Office of the Prosecuting Attorney 930 Tacoma Avenue South, Room 946 Tacoma, WA 98402-2171 Main Office (253) 798-7400