Man arrested for attempted murder after shots fired at Whatcom County residents, cops says
A Whatcom County man was arrested Friday for attempted murder after he allegedly fired several shots at people and into their home.
Matthew Bentley, 37, of Maple Falls, was arrested on Oct. 6 after deputies received a report from a resident at about 4:30 p.m. of a man with a gun in the 6200 block of Bellwood Drive in Maple Falls, according to Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Deb Slater.
911 also received multiple reports of shots being fired and a resident reported that one house had been shot at multiple times and had bullet holes.
The occupants of the home that was shot at told deputies they saw a white male with short black hair and a beard, later identified as Bentley, slashing a tire on one of their vehicles. They apparently confronted him in their driveway and he fired several shots at them, Slater told The Bellingham Herald.
No one was injured in the shooting and Bentley left the scene on foot. The victims do not know Bentley and have no prior relationship with him, Slater told The Herald.
Deputies and multiple agencies responded to the report, including the Bellingham Police Department’s Bearcat, the Sumas Police Department’s drone and a K9 unit, which ultimately tracked and located Bentley, Slater said. Witnesses then confirmed Bentley was the man who shot at them.
Bentley is a convicted felon.
Superior court records show he has a controlled substance possession conviction from 2007, a third-degree assault with sexual motivation conviction from 2007, an unlawful possession of a controlled substance conviction from 2012, a disorderly conduct and third-degree theft conviction from 2013, and most recently, a third-degree assault (domestic violence) conviction and a fourth-degree assault (domestic violence) conviction from 2020.
Bentley was booked into the Whatcom County Jail on Friday for second-degree attempted murder, second-degree malicious mischief and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
This story was originally published October 9, 2023 at 11:41 AM.
