Eric Kulp was taken into custody in the Marblemount area of Skagit County by the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office with the help of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office after a brief standoff on the afternoon of Friday, April 13. According to San Juan County Prosecutor Randy Gaylord, Kulp suffered serious self-inflicted wounds during the stand-off and is currently in Harborview in Seattle.

The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office developed probable cause to arrest Kulp for second-degree murder in the death of his wife, Abigail Finney, 38. Her body was found Thursday, April 5 on their property on Blind Bay Road, Shaw Island, where she lived with Kulp, formerly known as Eric Tubbs.

Once Kulp goes before a judge regarding his arrest, the prosecutor’s office has 72 hours to file charges.

Gaylord, who is also the county coroner, said a determination of the cause of death will await the completion of the autopsy report in a couple of weeks. Gaylord agreed with Sheriff Krebs that talking to Kulp is important to the determinations that need to be made by the coroner.