SEATTLE — The suspect in a deadly stabbing outside a Capitol Hill gas station Tuesday morning said he “wanted to end [the victim’s] suffering,” according to a probable cause statement by Seattle police.
The 53-year-old man was arrested early Tuesday after allegedly stabbing a 45-year-old man to death around 3:30 a.m. outside the 76 gas station near Broadway and East Pike Street in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.
The court found probable cause for first degree murder and set bail for the suspect at $2 million Wednesday. King County prosecutors argued he should be held based on community safety concerns.
A charging decision is likely this week, said Casey McNerthney, spokesperson for the Prosecutor’s Office. The Seattle Times is not naming the suspect because he has not yet been charged.
A witness told police he saw the victim being chased and stabbed by the suspect down Broadway before he fell and the suspect continued stabbing, according to the probable cause statement. The witness ran toward the suspect using pepper spray and he ran away.
Two witnesses who arrived in the parking lot right before the homicide told police they heard the victim say, “Why are you doing this? I don’t even know you.”
Another witness who had struck the man with a rock pointed to him once officers arrived at the scene and shouted “that’s him” several times, the statement said. He pointed to a knife on the ground the suspect dropped, the statement said.
He was later detained by citizens on Boylston Avenue, the statement said.
A Seattle Police Department officer and Seattle fire personnel gave the victim first aid, but he died shortly after 4 a.m. He had been stabbed multiple times in his back, chest and neck.
The statement said the suspect admitted to the stabbing once in custody and said “I wanted to end his suffering.” He later said the victim had a knife and stole his cellphone charger, the statement said.
