Who is Brett Gitchel: Docs detail troubled past of man linked to missing woman
SEATTLE - Original police reports obtained by FOX 13 show a series of 911 calls made by, or against, Brett Gitchel— the man arrested in connection to the disappearance of Leticia Martinez.
In October 2022, Gitchel called police and reported that his AirPods and eight doses of Suboxone were stolen from his apartment in Ellensburg. Suboxone is a medication used to treat opioid addiction.
Soon after, a neighbor told police she heard Gitchel claim he would burn their apartment down, and as a woman walked through a nearby alleyway, she heard Gitchel state: "I hope you get raped," according to the police report.
In a report from January 2023, Gitchel’s landlord told police that she had been having problems with him for ‘months’ and that she was trying to evict him. She shared with police that she was worried he would actually burn the apartment down.
Later in the month, another call to 911 was made. This time, a neighbor in a nearby apartment claims to have heard yelling from Gitchel’s apartment, the person yelling they wanted to "burn this house down and go to prison."
However, the most involved use of police resources came last December when a formal missing persons report was filed on Gitchel’s behalf.
ALSO READ: Docs: Suspect in Leticia Martinez's disappearance 'tried to murder her son' before torching her car
On Dec. 12, 2022, Gitchel called a specific non-emergency line with Kittitas County and claimed to have hit his head, and that he was coming in and out of consciousness.
Officers arrived on scene before paramedics did to find the door slightly ajar. As they entered, there was no sign of Gitchel. However, as the police report later shows, Gitchel claimed to a neighbor in the apartment complex that he had hidden inside a ‘secret closet’ when police were inside his place looking for him.
Police then contacted family and Gitchel’s ex-girlfriend of nearly seven years. She reported to police that Gitchel had a known addiction to prescription drugs and meth.
On Dec. 14, a staff member at Central Washington University contacted Ellensburg Police and stated Gitchel had been in contact with the school and was in Alexandria, Virginia.
Gitchel apparently claimed to CWU staff he had "contracted a disease from pool equipment that infected him with nano-technology" and that he "was currently looking for the CIA headquarters."
Ellensburg Police then requested police in Virginia check on Gitchel, who was staying in an area Hilton hotel. Alexandria Police reported Gitchel was okay but "was just acting strange." Gitchel was removed as a missing person in Ellensburg.
Ellensburg Police then report the Secret Service reached out and requested more information on Gitchel. It’s unclear what came of this interaction or if a federal case was opened.
Back in Washington, Gitchel was just recently arrested for burglary stemming from a March 28 incident in West Seattle.
According to court documents, Gitchel went into the victim's backyard multiple times, tried the back door, ripped down cameras and cut cables outside. He allegedly stole a leafblower and a clock.
It was just a week after the alleged burglary that Gitchel would be arrested in connection to Martinez's disappearance and her son's kidnapping. He is now being held in King County Jail on $5 million bail for first-degree attempted murder, first-degree kidnapping, and second-degree arson.
Martinez was last seen with Gitchel at a Seattle Mariners game on March 31. Her family has not seen or heard from her since.
TIMELINE: What we know so far about the disappearance of Leticia Martinez
Detectives are continuing to look for 58-year-old Leticia Martinez, who was last seen with a man at a Seattle Mariners game on March 31.