COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — A Spokane Valley man involved in the shooting death of a Coeur d'Alene teen was sentenced to more than 14 years in prison on Wednesday.
24-year-old Dennen Trey George Fitterer-Usher will spend more than 14 years behind bars for the death of 18-year-old Gabriel Casper from Coeur d'Alene. Charges against Fitterer-Usher include conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to a press release by the United States Department of Justice, in 2021, Fitterer-Usher met 20-year-old Matthew James Holmberg from Spokane Valley. Holmberg was reportedly involved in distributing a variety of controlled substances, including fentanyl pills, and he began bringing Fitterer-Usher to drug deals with him as an armed bodyguard.
On May 31, 2021, Casper and two other teens, 19-year-old Vadin Bartlett and 18-year-old Ashton Creech, met Holmberg and Fitterer-Usher in their car near Cherry Hill in Coeur d’Alene. Casper had arranged to purchase $300 worth of pills and rob Holmberg.
During the deal, Casper and the other teens arrived armed and attempted to steal the pills. Fitterer-Usher pulled his firearm and shot Casper six times. While the other two teens fled from the gunfire, Holmberg sped off with Casper still in the vehicle, and several blocks later, Casper was pushed from the moving car and left to die.
Casper was found lying in the middle of Coeur d’Alene Avenue, in Coeur d’Alene, and died of his wounds.
After local, state, and federal officers began investigating Casper’s death, Fitterer-Usher and Holmberg were located and arrested.
Upon completion of his prison time, Fitterer-Usher was also ordered to serve an additional three years of supervised release. Holmberg was also charged with conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He has pleaded guilty to both offenses and is set to be sentenced on Feb. 6, 2023.
Bartlett and Creech were both prosecuted by the State of Idaho for attempted robbery. Bartlett was sentenced to a suspended sentence of five years, fixed followed by seven years indeterminate and was placed on probation after completing a rider. Creech was sentenced to an imposed sentence of four years fixed followed by 11 years indeterminate and is currently serving his time in the Idaho Department of Correction.
Officers learned that Holmberg had been selling fentanyl-laced pills for several months via social media websites, including Snapchat. Even after his arrest, officers continued to investigate Holmberg’s source of supply.
This resulted in the arrest and prosecution of multiple individuals in Washington and Arizona who were involved in obtaining tens of thousands of fentanyl pills from a source in Mexico via Arizona and distributing those pills in Washington and North Idaho.
“The sentence imposed for this crime—as well as the other multiple prosecutions arising from this investigation, shows that our office and our partners will spare no effort in seeking justice against those who commit violence and distribute drugs in our communities,” U.S. Attorney Hurwit said.
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