The 27-year-old suspect, now charged with first-degree murder and arson, admitted to Okanogan County police that he stabbed the elderly man with a machete and then bludgeoned him with a sledgehammer before setting his house on fire, local station KREM 2 reported.
According to court documents, officials tracked Fudge to a tent in a nearby park based on descriptions offered by witnesses who spotted him near the burning home. Police ultimately took Fudge into custody after finding weapons in his possession and "black burned stuff on his clothing."
Per Fudge's statement, he stabbed the victim with the machete before igniting a fire in front of the home's wood stove. He then went back upstairs to beat the man with a sledgehammer before wandering off to the man's truck to drink a beer.
Fudge also admitted that he would've stolen the truck but he felt that it was "too full of demons."
The local station reported that the man is also charged with burglary in the first degree and theft of a motor vehicle.
Police announced in a statement that the victim had previously filed a restraining order against Fudge after he refused to remove his trailer from his property in 2016. That order expired in July.
