Father of slain Laytonville pot grower said son was ‘peaceful, kind man’

The father of a slain Laytonville pot grower killed at his marijuana operation late last week said Tuesday his son was a peaceful, kind man working in a dangerous business.

Mendocino County sheriff’s detectives have identified five suspects in the death of Jeffrey Settler, 35. They believe the five have fled the state, taking 100 pounds of processed pot they stole from Settler.

Settler, who for years had been involved in marijuana operations, had been a grower in Laytonville for more than a decade, said his father, Greg Settler of Lubbock, Texas.

The suspects - four men and one woman - had worked for Settler trimming harvested plants, according to sheriff’s officials.

“I didn’t necessarily agree with what he did. He’s my son. He didn’t deserve this,” said a tearful Greg Settler. “He was the most peaceful, kindest person.

“What he did was dangerous. It cost him his life,” his father said.

Authorities have said Jeffrey Settler was awakened early Friday by his employees, who intended to rob him. The man was violently attacked and found dead later that day, according to sheriff’s officials, who have released little else about the slaying. An autopsy was conducted Monday afternoon but results have not yet been released.

Settler put up a fight as he was beaten and stabbed, according to a law enforcement source.

Jeff Settler was the father of three, including a three-week-old boy and a 1-year-old boy by his longtime girlfriend, said Greg Settler.

He was born and raised in Lubbock, Texas, the middle child of Greg and Deborah Settler’s five children.

“He’s always done the marijuana thing, since he was young,” his father said. Sometimes that resulted in punishment from his father, Greg Settler said, as marijuana wasn’t acceptable in conservative Lubbock.

His son left Texas for the West Coast and over the years had lived in Seattle, Portland and Oakland. He’d also been involved in a marijuana field in Geyserville, said Greg Settler. Shortly after 2003, Jeffrey Settler moved to the Bay Area and then began growing marijuana in Laytonville, his father said.

Sheriff’s officials initially said Settler had been a Bethel Island resident in Contra Costa County, but Greg Settler said that was his address and his son had briefly stayed with him there.

“He had several different properties in Laytonville,” Greg Settler said, but he didn’t know if his son owned or leased the land. “He loved it. Loved the forest, the redwoods.”

The Laytonville operation was commercial, not medical, according to sheriff’s officials. But Greg Settler said he knew his son, who used marijuana medicinally, sold to various medical marijuana dispensaries and worked with a medical marijuana doctor.

“He just enjoyed life in general. He was a big Grateful Dead fan, went to all of their shows,” Greg Settler said. “He would take us to fancy four-star restaurants in San Francisco, show us a good time. He would do anything for his children and girlfriend, or a stranger off the street.”

“He really liked helping people,” said his brother, Brad Settler, who also lives in Texas. “He was always happy and cheerful.”

Greg Settler said his son would have married his girlfriend but he was wanted on an arrest warrant for marijuana crimes and tried to keep his head down.

A Sonoma County sheriff’s official Tuesday said there was an active warrant for Settler’s arrest involving three felony marijuana charges. Bail for the warrant was $150,000.

Greg Settler last saw his son just over a year ago. Although they lived far apart, the grandparents regularly saw pictures of their grandsons on social media.

“We were in touch. He happened to call me two days prior to his death,” his father said.

His son had called, thrilled about the new baby.

“He was so happy and proud to be a father,” Greg Settler said.

Greg and Deborah Settler on Friday night learned of their son’s death. They drove from Texas to Ukiah and met with sheriff’s dept. detectives Tuesday.

The sheriff’s department identified the suspects in Jeff Settler’s killing as Zachary Ryan Wuester, 24, of Haskell, N.J.; Frederick Gaestel, 27, of Clifton, N.J.; Gary Blank III of Elgin, Ill.; Gary Lynn Fitzgerald, 23, of Roanoke, Ill.; and Amanda Weist, 26, of Fairfax, Va.

Greg Settler praised the Sheriff’s Office and said he appreciated both their efforts to find his son’s killers and their communication with him.

“Hopefully those criminals are found,” he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 707-521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@rossmannreport.