Former Oregon Fire Chief Moved His Mistress Into His Home Shortly After Murdering His Wife

An Oregon fire chief, who installed his mistress his home shortly after murdering his wife, was sentenced to 25 years in prison yesterday.

He Maintained that his Wife Died of a Seizure

Kevin West (52), the former battalion chief at Camas-Washougal Fire Department, maintained that he was not responsible for her death and that she had died after a seizure.

A Washington state medical examiner originally found no conclusive evidence of foul play, and the body of Marcy West (48) was released to a funeral home.

An Acquaintance Tipped off the Police About his Affair

However, after an acquaintance of the fire chief told investigators that he had seen West bowling with a woman who was not his wife, his wife’s body was retrieved for a second autopsy. Those findings revealed bloody tissue in Marcy West’s throat, indicating death by strangulation.

West told detectives that he and his wife had spent the evening of January 8, 2024, watching movies, and then made love before going to sleep in their home on 34^th Street, Washougal.

However, an iPhone health app on West’s phone showed that someone had been pacing back and forth for hours before phoning 911.

The former fire chief was convicted of the first-degree murder of his wife of more than 20 years when he appeared before a Portland grand jury in January.

At that hearing, jurors heard evidence of the smartphone data, which contradicted his version of events on the night of the murder. They also heard evidence of West’s desire to have an alimony-free future.

Court documents reveal that West wanted to purchase a compound in Goldendale, Washington, but mounting debt prevented him from doing so, despite his $160,000 annual salary.