Suspect in Missoula shooting death arrested; bail set at $1M

MISSOULA (AP) — The suspect in a Missoula shooting death has been arrested, police said.

Christopher Lance Newrider, 33, was arrested at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at the apartment complex where the shooting happened, said Sgt. Travis Welsh.

Prosecutors have filed a deliberate homicide charge against Newrider for the death of Sundance Hernandez, 33. He was shot in the head in the parking lot on Tuesday afternoon. Witnesses identified Newrider as the shooter, police said.

An arrest warrant set Newrider's bail at $1 million. He was booked into jail just after 8 p.m. Wednesday. The jail roster does not yet list any scheduled court appearances.

It wasn't immediately known if he had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.

Investigators and a K-9 team from the Missoula County sheriff's office found a weapon earlier Wednesday near the Clark Fork River in the area where Newrider had been last seen after the shooting, officials said.

The police aren't looking for any other suspects and said they believed there is no further threat to the public.

Newrider pleaded guilty to aggravated kidnapping and aggravated felony assault for beating and hog-tying a man in Missoula in 2007, causing injuries including broken bones and a collapsed lung. He also has burglary convictions from 2006 and 2018, state records said.