Ferndale man pleads guilty to murdering his father

FERNDALE, Wash. — Christopher Koop, age 43, of Ferndale has pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder in the beating death of his father, William Koop, in 2017.

According to Whatcom County Superior Court documents, as a result of a plea agreement, Christopher was sentenced to 22 years in prison and 3 years of community custody during a hearing on May 18th. Credit for the over 4 years he remained in custody since his arrest was granted. He was also ordered to pay $500 in fines and fees.

Sentencing was based on the seriousness of the crime and Christopher’s prior criminal history which includes 2nd degree assault (domestic violence) in 2006 and residential burglary in 1995 along with 5 felony burglary crimes committed while a juvenile according to court records. Washington state sentencing guidelines are for between 14.5 and 22.9 years in prison for 2nd degree murder.

According to an affidavit of probable cause provided by Ferndale Police and submitted into Whatcom County Superior Court by prosecutors, on April 25, 2017, at approximately 7:30pm, officers were dispatched to a residence in the 6100 block of Grouse Circle due to a report that William Koop, age 65, was potentially deceased inside the residence. The report also said his son, Christopher Koop, age 39 at the time, would be responsible for his death.

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When officers contacted Christopher at the residence, he told the officer he had killed his father and the body was in the garage. Officers found the body on the floor of the garage wrapped in a blanket with injuries about the head.

During questioning, Christopher told officers he and his father had been arguing over bills on April 13th and he began punching his father in the face until his father became unconscious. He then used multiple objects, including a hammer and a flashlight, to beat his father and unsuccessfully attempted to smother him with a pillow. He ultimately left his father to bleed to death.

Christopher moved his father’s body from an upstairs bedroom into the garage and over the following days tried unsuccessfully to dispose of it. This included attempting to load it in a vehicle and beginning to dig a grave in the backyard of the residence.

Officers received a search warrant and located the hammer and broken flashlight. They also found what appeared to be blood in an upstairs bedroom and a trail of the same leading down the stairs to the garage. They also found a partially dug gravesite in the yard.

According to jail records, Christopher was booked into Whatcom County Jail on April 26, 2017, and charged with suspicion of 1st degree murder. He remained in custody for the duration of the trial with bail set at $1,000,000.