September 12, 2024 4:00 a.m. 

Covering coastal Douglas County:

A husband and wife have been arrested for witness tampering in a child sex abuse case.

A Douglas County Sheriff’s Office release said on Monday, September 9th, detectives with DCSO were made aware of an attempt to tamper with the female victim in the case. Detectives were advised that 36-year-old Eric Cumming and his wife, 38-year-old Tabitha Cumming, both of Gardiner, were conspiring to get the juvenile victim to change her story in order to get Eric Cumming released.

Lieutenant Kelly Bean said, “Detectives launched an investigation into the allegations and determined that Eric, who is currently lodged in the Douglas County Jail, was communicating with his wife via letters. In those letters they discussed having Tabitha persuade the victim into changing her story”.

Bean said Tabitha went as far as to contact the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office and advise them that the juvenile had recanted her story and wanted to set the record straight.

DCSO detectives spoke with Tabitha and the juvenile, determining that Tabitha and Eric had in fact taken steps toward tampering with the witness/victim.

Tabitha Cumming was jailed on a single charge of tampering with a witness, which is a class C felony. She was detained on $25,000 bail. Eric Cumming was also charged with tampering with a witness. He is being held on 37 charges in the case. Bail is set at $1 million.

Eric Cumming was originally arrested on August 19th, following a reported disturbance in the 70000 block of Highway 101 in Gardiner.