Thurston judge sets bail for two suspects in Feb. 19 Olympia homicide case
A 28-year-old man accused of murder in connection with a Feb. 19 assault on Olympia’s east side is being held in the Thurston County jail without bail.
Arrin Daniel Salter attended his preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on Thursday. Olympia police arrested him Wednesday on suspicion of second-degree murder, according to the county jail roster.
Salter is accused of assaulting Matthew R. Lawrence with a baseball bat on Feb. 19 in a wooded area near the 3200 block of Martin Way East. Passersby in the area found Lawrence unconscious with a serious head injury and brought him to the street for first responders.
Lawrence died at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Feb. 23, The Olympian previously reported. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office determined he died from “blunt force injury of the head” and his manner of death was ruled a homicide.
Judge John C. Skinder found probable cause for the alleged crime Thursday and imposed a no bail hold. In doing so, he found Salter had a “propensity for violence by clear and convincing evidence that creates a substantial likelihood of danger to the community,” according to court records.
Olympia police also arrested Ashley Ybarra, Salter’s 26-year-old partner, on suspicion of first-degree rendering criminal assistance, the county jail roster shows. Skinder also found probable cause for that alleged crime and set Ybarra’s bail at $100,000, according to court records.
At the time of his arrest, Salter also was wanted by law enforcement for escaping community custody in connection with a first-degree robbery case.
Court records show Salter has previous convictions for first-degree burglary, first-degree robbery and second-degree assault in a 2014 Thurston County Superior Court case.
Salter also was convicted of vehicle prowling in a 2014 Olympia Municipal Court case and theft in a 2022 Thurston County District Court case, according to court records.
Ybarra’s criminal history dates back to 2016 and includes second-degree theft and possession of a stolen vehicle cases in Pierce County as well as a false statement to a public servant case in Puyallup, court records show.
The investigation
A probable cause statement describes the investigation into Salter and Ybarra from the perspective of law enforcement.
Olympia police found Lawrence just outside a wooded area where the alleged assault occurred on Feb. 19.
Passersby found him and moved him to the roadside so first responders could help him. They later directed police to the scene where he was initially found, according to the statement.
Lawrence was initially transported to Providence St. Peter Hospital where staff determined he had a fractured skull with brain swelling. A doctor reportedly placed his odds of survival at 50/50 at the time, court records say.
On Feb. 21, an officer located a person who informed them Salter and Ybarra, who was also known as “Sway,” were involved in the Feb. 19 assault.
The officer later located a witness who said they saw Salter hit Lawrence with a worn aluminum baseball bat after yelling at him to “stay out of his yard,” according to the statement.
The witness said they left the scene to find help, but Lawrence was gone when they returned.
The statement says the witness said they later saw Salter trying to move Lawrence prior to when other passersby found him.
The witness later identified Salter from a photo line-up of six men presented by police, according to the statement.
During the course of the investigation, a detective learned Lawrence had lived at a tiny home village on Franz-Anderson Road.
The statement indicates workers at the village relayed tips from residents to law enforcement that pointed them toward Salter, Ybarra and later the baseball bat. Other tips reportedly came in via phone call and an online complaint form, allegedly implicating Salter and Ybarra as well.
A detective found Salter’s Facebook page, which showed he was in a relationship with Ybarra, according to the statement.
In a post described in the statement, Salter said he had “NOTHING to do with what happened” and he wanted people to stop spreading rumors about him.
A Washington state Department of Corrections warrant for Salter’s arrest indicated he is an affiliated gang member and white supremacist, according to the statement.
Detectives tracked Salter and Ybarra’s whereabouts by following their Washington Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Card transactions. This led them to stores and a motel in Pierce County and even a store Portland, per the statement.
Surveillance footage from those locations showed the pair together.
A search warrant for Salter’s phone records showed it was used to place a 911 call on Feb. 19 soon after Lawrence was assaulted. A recording of the 911 call determined Ybarra called to say a “kid” fell and hit his head. A male voice, who detectives believe is Salter, then tells Ybarra to hang up the phone.
“I guess they got it all under control; he’s awake,” Ybarra allegedly said at the end of the call.
Olympia police arrested Salter and Ybarra at a Lacey residence on Wednesday. Detectives separately interviewed them at the Olympia Police Department.
Ybarra allegedly said Arrin admitted to her that he hit a person with his bat. She said she tried to call 911 but Salter told her hang up the phone.
A witness waited with Ybarra as passersby moved Lawrence to the street. Police were dispatched about 23 minutes later, the statement says. Ybarra reportedly spoke with police at the scene but did not point them to Salter.
Salter denied doing anything wrong when he was interviewed and did not react when accused of killing Lawrence, according to the statement. After the detective left the room, Salter allegedly threw a cup of water in anger.
“I’m going to prison for the rest of my life,” Salter allegedly said to himself in the room.
