A murder suspect, who was unintentionally released from a California prison last year, has been apprehended by U.S. Marshals over 3,000 miles away, according to authorities.
On Tuesday, Seattle Police arrested 20-year-old Isaiah Jamon Andrews in St. Louis, Missouri. He is accused of fatally shooting 20-year-old Theodore Wheeler in Seattle’s Northgate neighborhood on October 15, 2025.
Andrews had initially been arrested shortly after the shooting in Antioch, California, following a police chase involving multiple agencies. He was booked into the Contra Costa County Jail on a temporary murder warrant.
However, jail officials mistakenly released Andrews on October 22, just days after his arrest. This happened despite him being held on a juvenile warrant from Sacramento and an out-of-state murder warrant connected to the Seattle case.
The mistake wasn’t realized until after Andrews had left the facility, prompting a multi-agency investigation, including the U.S. Marshals Service. He managed to evade capture for over five months before being found in St. Louis, where he was arrested without any incident. He will be extradited to Washington state to face a first-degree murder charge.
The circumstances surrounding his release have not been fully explained. Attempts to reach the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office for clarification on the mistake were unsuccessful. Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes acknowledged the blunder back in October.
Andrews was facing local charges in California at the time of his release and also had an outstanding juvenile warrant from Sacramento County.
The victim’s family expressed their distress over the error. The mother of Theodore Wheeler shared her feelings with a local news outlet, saying she felt hurt and disappointed, emphasizing that communication was lacking from the authorities. She insisted that there shouldn’t be anyone capable of allowing such a mistake to happen, expressing fear for her family’s safety.
