A months-long investigation into the fatal stabbing of a 66-year-old man in Marysville has led to the arrests of two suspects, according to the Marysville Police Department.
Officers responded to a 911 call at 6:16 a.m. on March 31 reporting a man down in the 1200 block of 2nd Street.
When police and fire crews arrived, they found Gheorghe Sandru suffering from a stab wound to the chest.
Despite lifesaving efforts, Sandru died at the scene.
A review of local security video helped investigators quickly identify a vehicle that one of the suspects had left in as a passenger.
The Violent Offenders Task Force located that vehicle just hours later and detained the registered owner, Andrew Elliott.
He was questioned and released, but police seized his vehicle as evidence.
Over the next several months, detectives collected and reviewed large amounts of video and other evidence from Marysville, Tulalip, and Everett.
Investigators served multiple search warrants for vehicles, phones, call records, social media accounts, and a suspected murder weapon.
The Washington State Patrol Crime Lab processed DNA swabs, fingerprints, and other forensic evidence.
That work helped investigators link both Elliott and another man, Keith Stuard, to what police say was a planned armed robbery that ended in Sandru’s death.
Stuard was arrested on July 2 with assistance from the Marysville Police Pro-Act Unit and Everett Police Anti-Crime Team.
He was booked into jail on charges of first- and second-degree murder.
His bail was set at $2 million the next day in Snohomish County District Court.
Elliott was arrested Friday based on information developed by the Violent Offenders Task Force.
He was also booked on first- and second-degree murder charges.
Both men remain in custody at the Snohomish County Jail.
The case is scheduled for arraignment Monday in Snohomish County Superior Court.
Marysville police say this is the city’s only homicide so far in 2025.
The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Nate Adams at (360) 363-8300 or email nadams@marysvillewa.gov.
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