CHENEY, Wash. — A Cheney man said he was fighting for his life after a stranger in his garage maced him in the face and attacked him. He's sharing his story as a warning to others.
Randy Weatherbee decided to take his dog on an an early morning walk on Sunday, August 18.
When he got outside, he first noticed his son's bike was not where he left it. Then, he found a stranger in his garage.
"So I just said, 'What are you doing in my garage?' And at first, he told me, 'I was looking for a bike pump'," Weatherbee said. "I said, 'Nah, I don't think so.'"
He said it was unusual how calm and cool the man was. So calm, in fact, that Weatherbee was able to snap a couple pictures of him and call police.
"I said, 'Relax they're on their way,'" Weatherbee said. "And when I said 'they're on their way', he was about from me to you and he had a can of mace and he maced me. Then, he jumped on me, grabbed me by the neck, and threw me down on the ground. I managed to get on top of him and he took that empty can of mace and just started pounding me in the head. Then, I managed to get away again and threw him to the ground."
Spokane County court documents identify the suspect as 24-year-old Daniel Bogdanovich.
Eventually, Weatherbee told Bogdanovich he was going to let him go. Cheney police arrived just as he did.
"Every cop car in Cheney was on it," Weatherbee said.
The suspect took off running but he couldn't out run police. They arrested him and took him to the hospital for minor injuries. He was later booked in to Spokane County Jail.
"I couldn't see anything at that point so I had no idea what was going on," Weatherbee said.
According to court documents, Cheney police responded to three more home burglaries and five vehicle break-ins within a mile of Weatherbee's home on the same day.
Items police found with Bogdanovich led them to believe he was involved in those break-ins.
Weatherbee, still a bit shaken up, suffered a few bruises. But he is doing OK.
He hopes his story will be a caution to others. He said this can happen to anyone and that you should never let your guard down when confronting a suspicious situation.
The suspect has pleaded not guilty to the burglary and prowling charges. His bond is set at $2,500.
