Whitcomb cannot confirm the nature of the crime under investigation—or what made it such a high-risk procedure—but he says officers needed two perimeters, shutting down several intersection around the building being searched at Leary Way NW and NW 45th Street. But according to two witnesses at the scene, who spoke to officers on the scene, police were investigating an alleged chop shop, where stolen cars are disguised so they can be resold. A witness, Kris Nyrop, said the place is "sketchy as hell" and he has seen people welding in the building at 3:00 in the morning.

At 9:00 p.m. officers arrested Sean M. Campbell, the suspect who was holed up inside. He was booked in King County jail about 30 minutes later.

King County Superior Court records show that Campbell, 39, failed to appear for an arraignment hearing in March on charges of a stolen red Ford Explorer from an Avis car rental and a stolen laptop computer taken in a Bellevue car prowl. Campbell is also wanted for a felony probation violation, says King County Prosecutor’s office spokesman Dan Donohoe. However, in a booking form filled out in March, someone checked "no" in a box that asks "armed and dangerous."

But police may be frying a bigger fish than a missed arraignment and probation violation: "Because it was a search warrant, that leads us to believe it is part of a bigger investigation that is actively being pursued," Whitcomb says. “I would check for charges coming soon."

A husband who killed his wife while he said he had a dream about an intruder has been cleared of her murder.
Brian Thomas, 59, admitted killing Christine, 57, in their camper van, but blamed his rare sleep disorder.
He was discharged after the judge told the jury to return a not guilty verdict at Swansea Crown Court after the death at Aberporth, Ceredigion.
The judge told Mr Thomas, of Neath, that "in the eyes of the law you bear no responsibility for the events".

Monfort, who is alive and paralyzed from the waist down (he was shot during his arrest), was a good truck driver for most of the time he worked at Pilot (2007 to 2009). But around the middle of this year, he began to perform his job poorly. The article seems to suggest that Monfort was pushed over the edge by the man who fired him, Michael Thompson, "a former 19-year Snohomish County sheriff's deputy." Thompson (whose previous job was no secret to the employees of Pilot) not only fired Monfort but also brought his last check to his house.

This, according to the report, is the incident that finally cost Monfort his job...

But Monfort's work fell below standards over the late spring and summer, capped by an incident in July in which he failed to notify a dispatcher that he had stopped for a weigh-station inspection while heading to Vancouver, B.C., with a load of temperature-sensitive cherries, Thompson said.

As a result, the dispatcher was kept from alerting an air carrier that was to fly the cherries to the Far East, Thompson said.

The delivery didn't arrive on schedule and the plane left, although the cherries eventually made it on later flight, he said.

Nonetheless, the breakdown represented a serious breach of company rules, Thompson said.

Dominic Holden reports at 7:39 pm by phone:

Dozens of police officers have shut down Leary Way between Ballard and Fremont and have surrounded a business that two witnesses say may be a "chop shop" where stolen cars are converted or modified so they are not identifiable. There are police on almost every intersection. It's impossible to tell where people are allowed to go and not allowed to go. It's just a tremendous amount of police. Someone on the scene says that they heard someone else say they heard shots fired 45 minutes ago.

Police have surrounded one of the buildings and are making announcements over the loudspeaker, saying, 'We know you are in there. Come out.'

One man appears to have already been arrested. There was just a loud bang—sounded like a gunshot.

This is just breaking and facts may change. Nothing on Seattle Times, Seattle PI, KOMO 4 News, King 5 News, or Seattlecrime.com yet. We'll continue to update.

UPDATE 7:43 PM: MyBallard.com has a photo of the scene. Their report:

We’re hearing of police activity around 8th & Leary and Leary is closed down west of 8th Ave. Witness say it is quite a display of police and SWAT in the area. Seattle Police Detective Jeff Kappel tells us that this is an ongoing investigation and police are serving a warrant. Given that this is an active investigation he says that he doesn’t have any other information.

Silver sent in this photo and says two people have been handcuffed and placed in the back of an unmarked vehicle. She says that officers are still yelling into a building for at least one more person to come out. She has also heard quite a bit of breaking glass and several “flash bangs.”

UPDATE 7:52 PM: Again from Dominic:

There is someone in the back of a cop car on the corner of Ninth NW and NW 45th, and officers keep coming up to talk to him, presumably to ask him questions. Over on 45th and Leary, that is the location of the person they are looking for. Police have said over the bullhorns, according to witness Kris Nyrop, "John Campbell, we know you are in there, come out with your hands up."

Police told Nyrop and a witness named Jordan (he wouldn't provide his last name) that John Campbell was suspected of running a "chop shop." Earlier they shot dowels in and "flash bangs," an officer confirmed, which was probably the sound we heard earlier.

Jordan, who is a nurse, said he gets home late and he has "seen them welding in there at 3:00 in the morning." He lives four blocks away from the site.

Nyrop said the place is "sketchy as hell" and he too has seen people welding in there at 3:00 in the morning.

Just a minute ago, it appears that a police van either drove in or drove up closer to the one-story building. The garage door had just been lifted up, suggesting that the officers and the SWAT team may have entered the building.

UPDATE 8:14 PM: Dominic Holden reports:

Seattle Police Captain Ron Wilson said that SWAT is out here serving a search warrant. "The case is under investigation and we cannot talk about it," he said. Wilson could not confirm any arrests, the nature of the suspected crime, or any tactics involved with the police operation. He did seem to imply that the police operation is not complete: "We have a warrant to serve and we are trying to do that," Wilson said. So it seems that whatever they've come to do they have not completed it yet.

Nothing yet at Seattle Times, Seattle PI, KOMO 4 News, King 5 News, KIRO TV, or Seattlecrime.com. Will add information as it becomes available.

UPDATE 9:41: MyBallard reports that police have arrested the suspect.

The victim stated that he walked through a parking lot somewhere in the area of 1st & Pike when he was attacked by 3 males. The victim stated that he didn’t see much of their faces as one of them hit him with a baseball bat. One of the suspects tried to take the victim’s cell phone but the victim was able to kick the suspect in the face.

The suspects then fled with the victims’ wallet. Approx. 20 minutes later, the victim was observed by a citizen and the citizen called police and fire. The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center for treatment.

Another man, arrested at 6:35 a.m., was apparently intoxicated as he allegedly tried to burgle a business in the Central District:

Upon officers arrival witnesses reported that a male suspect left the store via a broken window, carrying merchandise. A description of the suspect was broadcast over SPD radio and within minutes an officer located the suspect running near 15th Av and Spring St.

The suspect was arrested and taken into custody without incident. The suspect was positively identified by 2 witnesses. The suspect was then transported to Harborview Medical Center as he was having an adverse reaction to taking too much cocaine and wine. All the stolen property was recovered.

In the eyes of the police, I can't help but wonder, what is an "adverse reaction to taking too much cocaine and wine"? Maybe one man's adverse reaction is another man's desired effect.

About 450 people are expected Saturday at the Rainier Valley Food Bank to get food for Thanksgiving meals. But when staff arrived Wednesday at 6 a.m., they found the lock on the storage container had been cut and nearly everything inside had been stolen.

Burglars took several hundred pounds of potatoes and onions, as well as 30 crates of canned fruit, soup, chips, peanut butter and vegetables that volunteers collected last weekend. The loss totaled $1,500 to $2,000, said Sam Osborne, the food bank's executive director.

Democracy Now reports:

Wall Street Headed for Record Profits in 2009

New government figures show Wall Street is on pace to have its most profitable year to date. On Tuesday, the New York Comptroller Office said Wall Street profits are set to exceed the record set three years ago, before the onset of the nation’s financial meltdown. The four largest firms—Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase—took in $22.5 billion in profits through September. The top six banks set aside $112 billion for salaries and bonuses over the same period. In a statement, New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said, “The national economy is slowly improving, but Wall Street has recovered much faster than anyone had envisioned.”

Thieves on the street; thieves on Wall Street.

The trial of a husband accused of murdering his wife as they slept in a camper van has heard he killed her while he dreamt she was an intruder.

Christine Thomas, 57, was killed in Aberporth, Ceredigion, in July 2008.
Swansea Crown Court heard Brian Thomas, 59, of Neath, accepts he killed her but says he has a sleep disorder which had been triggered by "boy racer activity".

Prosecuting barrister Paul Thomas... described how Mr Thomas killed his wife, his childhood sweetheart, because he had dreamt she was a man who had broken into their motor home.

The court was told Mr Thomas's disorder meant he was not in control of his actions when he strangled his partner of 40 years.

After commissioning evidence from sleep experts, the prosecution agreed his actions were involuntary and he could not be held responsible.

Prosecuting, Mr Thomas said the defendant was charged with the murder of his wife, whose death he accepted causing.

Killebrew told Channel 2 Action News reporter Tom Jones that she was shocked when her 16-year-old son told her his substitute math teacher at Mundy’s Mill High School was trying to hire a hit man to kill him.

“I was extremely upset. I called the school at that moment,” said Killebrew.

Killebrew’s attorney said the incident began when Forde called the student out of the classroom one day.

“(Forde) asked him if he was gay,” said attorney Terrance Madden.

Madden said the student became angry at the suggestion and the next day the two had a verbal altercation.

Weeks later, police said, Forde got a Mundy’s Mill student off a school bus and told him he had a hit on someone and needed him to take care of it. Officers said the student asked who it was and Forde said he would let him know.

Not even the kid's regular teacher—his substitute teacher.

Which dredges up some questions. What was so horrible/memorable about the kid that the teacher couldn't forget about him as soon as his substitute gig was done? Was the teacher hitting on the kid? (So to speak.) Or was he trying to pick on him? Was he afraid the kid would bring a sexual harassment suit? Or a discrimination suit?

And how could either of those options possibly be worse than criminal charges for hiring a high-school hit man kid?

And what's a "Mundy's Mill"? Its high-school mission statement:

Mundy's Mill High School is challenging minds, changing lives, and achieving success in a tradition and spirit of excellence.

Two out of three ain't bad.

Among the charges, Swalwell is accused of setting fires to Green Bean Coffee House, O-Rings West, Rosewood Guitars, and residences. I've saved the charging document and certification of probable cause (in this 2.5 meg .pdf) for geeks who like reading that sort of stuff. Swalwell is scheduled for an arraignment hearing on December 1 in the King County Courthouse.

At 11:15 last night, a police officer was looking for the victim of a reported assault in the 600 block of Seventh Avenue when she encountered the man impaled on a metal fence and screaming for help. Seattle Fire Department medics were called and removed the man from a fence spike and transported him to nearby Harborview Medical Center. ... he said he thought he was a ninja and would be able to leap over the 4- to 5-foot fence.

And the inevitable comment:

Does he still think he's a Ninja??? ...
Posted on November 17, 2009 at 8:35 AM by mountainguy

PHOENIX — There are new allegations against Sheriff Joe Arpaio as he conducts another one of his controversial crime sweeps.
The sheriff is targeting smugglers; but Arpaio himself is the target of critics who say this time he's really just playing for the press.
The sheriff shot down those claims, saying he’s dealing with increasingly sly, innovative smugglers, and this operation — targeting smugglers on highways — is needed.
But protesters accuse Sheriff Arpaio of staging the latest crime sweep for a national TV crew.
"This is nothing but grandstanding for national media who was asked to stay so they could witness a sweep,” said protester Lydia Guzman.
The sheriff's response?
"Network? What network? What is it? ABC? Oh, so I arranged this because ABC is here? The answer is no,” he said. “We happened to be here and they're smart enough to know they might want to film the sheriff."

Mockovak allegedly approached an employee of Clearly Lasik originally from Russia, repeatedly asking if he had connections in the Russian Mafia that could "take care of Klock," according to the probable-cause statement. The employee informed police about the inquiry, and the employee later began working as a police informant. He recorded conversations with Mockovak that allegedly set up agreements with fictitious mafia connections to kill King and Klock in exchange for money. Mockovak was arrested Thursday and prosecutors have asked bail to be set at $3 million.

Swalwell will make his first court appearance tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. in Courtroom 1 of the King County Jail for a bail hearing. Prosecutors have until Tuesday to file charges. Today's previous reporting on Swalwell's arrest and the ongoing investigation is here.

“This is great news for everyone concerned. I’m confident that the community will be able to rest easier now,” Seattle Police Chief Diaz said in a statement.

But police are uncertain if Swalwell is responsible for all of the fires set in Greenwood. (More on the arsons here.) The investigation remains open and the fire department's Fire Arson Task Force will continue patrols. "Detectives are uncertain whether or not any additional suspects are connected to these crimes," the police say. Anyone with information on the Greenwood fires is urged to call the tip line: (800) 55-ARSON.

The Seattle Times reports that the suspect was convicted of felony arson in 1995.

Um, not to seem soft on crime, but the "suspect" hasn't even been to an arraignment hearing—let alone begun a trial or, you know, been convicted guilty—and the Seattle Times is running a poll on sentencing him to death? Jeez, you guys. Get a grip. Now, for the record, I've been rabid about this case from the beginning. Whoever killed officer Brenton and shot at officer Britt Sweeney is human scum who deserves to be punished severely. And I'm not a fan of the death penalty—it's expensive, it's state-sanctioned murder, there are mistakes—but it's the law on the books and maybe it's what will happen in this case. However, we have a practice in the United States where we find that someone is innocent until proven guilty—because witch hunts are considered gauche. And because sometimes people are found not-guilty (granted, this guy appears guilty based on what we've heard from the police). But we don't sentence them to death before the trial begins. And we most certainly don't let the court of public opinion—the juvenile, petty court of Facebook, no less—send someone to the gallows. Even King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg, who called this crime "the worst of the worst," says there could be mitigating factors to consider before considering the death penalty.

UPDATE: The Seattle Times has removed the post from its Facebook page. I wonder why.

• Ouch.

Better idea!

I really want "Welcome to Seattle's Historic Homeless District," along with museum-style informational panels that talk about the neighborhood's long tradition of—and strong commitment to—concentrated, chronic homelessness.

Thank you, Paul Hughes.

A complainant called 911 to report an assault. He was on 3rd and Bell, standing outside [a building]. He stated that a known suspect had struck him with an umbrella several times (4-5). He stated that he was un-injured and the attack was over money owed. We ID complainant at the scene. Complainant declined medical assistance and stated he was uninjured. No evident injury was observed. No independent witnesses came forward during the investigation. Suspect was no longer on scene during the investigation.

Let's return to the report: In the mind of that criminal, the umbrella was not separate from but at one with his body. His neurons mapped that umbrella and possibly even the person he struck, at the moment of impact. For an instant, we can imagine that the suspect, umbrella, and victim shared the same peripersonal space

But it will remain unclear for months if Satterberg can actually pursue capital punishment for the crime committed on Halloween. The suspect, Christopher Monfort, remains hospitalized at Harborview, a few blocks east of the press conference, where King County Sheriff's deputies are guarding him. Monfort is recovering from gunshots wounds inflicted by police who were trying to apprehend him. While Satterberg says Monfort is “currently in stable condition and is expected to recover to face these charges,” proceedings will run into next year.

Defense attorneys for Monfort and prosecutors must consider mitigating factors in the primary crime—such as an insanity defense—before Satterberg can recommend that a jury consider the death penalty. Normally the decision is made by the arraignment, currently schedule on November 24, but Monfort’s arraignment could be pushed back because he hospitalized. Defense attorneys also typically ask for extensions, says prosecutors office spokesman Ian Goodhew, who estimates that the decision to seek the death penalty probably won’t be reached until March of 2010.

“We have never seen anything like this,” said Satterberg, repeatedly noting that most criminals hide from police instead of confronting them. He says police and families can "relax a little" knowing they have the suspect who was “trying to confront and kill as many police officers as possible” in a “his deadly war on the police.”

Prosecutors are also charging Monfort with three counts of attempted murder—trying to kill Brenton’s partner Britt Sweeney, trying to fire bomb officers in a south Seattle police car lot, and pulling the trigger on officers trying to apprehend him at his Tukwila apartment (Monfort had forgotten to changing the round, possibly saving the officers' lives)—and one count of arson.

Satterberg credited police work and a particularly valuable tip from one of Monfort’s neighbors, who noticed that a car similar to the sedan police were searching for had been "all of sudden been covered up by a tarp." Inside Monfort’s home, investigators found a bomb with a fuse linked to the kitchen stove and other explosives. In charging documents, Monfort’s identity was linked with the Brenton killing by an American flag bandana left at the scene of the crime, and an American flag left behind at the arson of the police facility in south Seattle. DNA linked both items to Monfort. Ballistics tests also show that a rifle found at Monfort’s home left its signature on the bullets recovered at the shooting.

Several relatives are due to witness the execution. Among them is Marion Lewis, 57, of Mountain Home, Idaho, whose daughter Lori Lewis Rivera was shot dead by Muhammad and Malvo - who pulled the trigger is not known - at a petrol station in Kensington, Maryland.

He is being flown to Virginia by a syndicated television show and told The Washington Post he was looking forward to seeing the death penalty imposed.

"I want to see what he made me see. He forced us to look at our little girl laying in a coffin. I want to see justice done. I want to see him take a last breath...I want to be able to describe it to the rest of the family.

Muhammad will be given the chance to say some final words. Mr Lewis, who said he would have preferred a more "gruesome" execution method, wished he could say something too. "It would be short and simple: 'I'm here to see you die...son of a bitch'."

Spanish mobile operators last night cut off an estimated three to four million pre-pay mobile phones whose owners had not followed government instructions to register their devices.

The mandatory scheme - in which all pre-pay mobiles have to be assigned to an ID document - was a reaction to the terrorist attacks of 11 March 2004, where the perpetrators used such phones to activate bombs on several trains in Madrid, killing 191.

According to El País, the pre-pay total on all the disconnected phones could be around €25m, but I wonder how much it will cost the illegal drug trade.

h/t: the Register

For three weeks in 2002, John Allen Muhammad led a two-man sniper team that struck on his orders, claimed 10 lives and deliberately terrorized Virginia, Maryland and Washington.
"Call me God," police were told in notes left at the scene of two attacks.
He is set to be executed by injection Tuesday for the slaying of Dean Harold Meyers, 53, shot in the head from long distance at a Manassas-area service station the evening of Oct. 9, 2002.

(TPM News) ...Cheryll Witz is one of several victims' relatives who were going to watch the execution. Malvo confessed that, at Muhammad's direction, he shot her father, Jerry Taylor, on a Tucson, Ariz., golf course in March 2002.

This afternoon, Seattle Police released a slew of additional information about Christopher Monfort, the suspect in the killing of Officer Timothy Brenton. Police said DNA collected from scene of an October 22 arson of police vehicles matches Monfort's DNA, and they found explosive devices and the modified rifle believed to have killed Brenton in Monfort's Tukwila apartment. Ballistics tests also matched bullets found at the murder scene with the rifle, police said.

Assistant Police Chief Jim Pugel said the arson at a police car parking lot in South Seattle could have been—and was designed by the suspect to be—much more destructive. Igniting two "mobile precincts" was allegedly designed to lure officers into a second, lethal explosion, Pugel said. Officers narrowly avoided the blast of two patrol cars because a facility employee led them in another direction after a suspect, he said. If responding officers had parked near the first explosion, "they would have likely been killed or seriously maimed," said Pugel.

Monfort's DNA sample came from a bandana with an American flag pattern, which Pugel said police picked up largely because it was an unusual item to find at a crime scene.

Before the arson, Seattle Police officers' last contact with Monfort was an October 15 traffic stop. A patrol car stopped Monfort in the Leschi neighborhood—he was then driving a dark green Ford, which looked a lot like a police cruiser—after he made a turn without signaling. The officers cited him for an expired insurance card, but there was no other incident at the time.

• The gun that allegedly killed Brenton

Prosecutors are preparing to file charges against Monfort in the next few days.

Police also released more details on Monfort's capture in Tukwila, as well as photographs of the improvised explosives found in his apartment, one of which was wrapped in pieces of metal police believe was designed to increase the amount of shrapnel fired off in an explosion.

More photographs from the suspect's apartment at the SPD Blotter.