Suspect in murder of Coast Guard pilot released on $3 million bond in Washington

Isaiah Altre Bolar faces second-degree murder with a firearm enhancement in the August 23 killing of 29-year-old Coast Guard Lt. Connor Scott Overstreet in Skyway. He pleaded not guilty during his October 7 arraignment.

Bolar’s release came after a judge previously rejected his attorneys’ request to reduce his bail to $100,000.

Charging documents detailed how investigators connected Bolar to the shooting after police arrested him in a separate incident just two days after Overstreet’s death.

Overstreet, a newlywed assigned to Coast Guard Air Station Ventura in California, was in Washington for work and training. Shortly before 12:45 am on August 23, he was riding Lime scooters with two friends near South 124th Street and South Langston Road when occupants of a passing Toyota Prius began yelling at them.

Following an exchange of words, the Prius made a U-turn and stopped. Overstreet approached the passenger-side window and leaned toward the vehicle. One of his friends told investigators he saw a muzzle flash as someone inside fired a single shot, striking Overstreet in the chest.

The Prius sped away. Overstreet was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy determined the bullet struck his lungs and an artery.

On August 25, Kent police attempted to stop a Prius that had been reported stolen during a May armed robbery investigated by Seattle police. Bolar, who was driving, allegedly fled at high speed before officers used spike strips to stop the vehicle.

Prosecutors allege that during the pursuit, Bolar pushed a backpack into his passenger’s chest and told him, “Take this.” The passenger discarded the bag in a trash can.

Inside, officers recovered a Ruger .357 revolver containing five live cartridges and one empty chamber. Investigators also found Bolar’s temporary driver’s permit, a balaclava, Lysol wipes and a family photograph.

Bolar was released on personal recognizance August 26, despite prosecutors requesting $20,000 bail for the attempting-to-elude allegation.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said prosecutors had not been informed of a potential connection to Overstreet’s killing when they made that request. Spokesperson Casey McNerthney previously said prosecutors would have sought higher bail had they known.

Bolar was charged with attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle on September 2 and pleaded not guilty.

The forensic connection came September 28, when the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory reported that the bullet and jacket fragment recovered from Overstreet’s body had been fired from the revolver recovered during Bolar’s August arrest.

Investigators also cited surveillance footage identifying the Prius by its distinctive lighting and wheel rims, along with cellphone records placing a phone associated with Bolar near the shooting at approximately 12:42 am. Detectives said its subsequent movements were consistent with the vehicle’s escape route before returning toward his Covington residence.

Bolar was arrested again October 1 and charged with murder the following day.