Dean Leon Tunstall was a 75-year-old White man known for his independent and sometimes teasing nature. A friend remembered him as being friendly to everyone at the local senior center. His life had taken him from Kansas to California before he settled in the Pacific Northwest, where he ran a copier business in Portland, Oregon. In his later years, he lived at the Smith Tower Apartments, a senior living community in Vancouver, Washington.
On the afternoon of October 3, 2019, Tunstall was
in the lobby of the apartment building with two women, Enilia Montoya and Shawna Garris. They were confronted by a fellow resident, 80-year-old Robert E. Breck. During the confrontation, Breck opened fire with a handgun, fatally shooting Tunstall and wounding both Montoya and Garris.
The violence reportedly stemmed from a dispute involving Shawna Garris, who had previously worked as a caregiver for Breck. According to court records, Breck had asked Garris to be his mistress. After she declined his offer, he terminated her employment and allegedly began spreading rumors about her and Tunstall. The conflict escalated until the deadly encounter in the lobby.
Immediately following the shooting, Breck returned to his apartment and barricaded himself inside, leading to a tense standoff with law enforcement. After a period of negotiation, he surrendered to police and was taken into custody without further incident.
Robert Breck was arrested and charged with the murder of Dean Tunstall and the attempted murder of Enilia Montoya and Shawna Garris. He entered a plea of not guilty to the charges. However, the case did not proceed to trial. On February 11, 2020, while awaiting his court date, Robert Breck died in custody at the Clark County Jail. Following the death of the primary suspect, the case was considered closed as of February 2020.
