Two People Are Being Held on Suspicion of Committing a String of Violent Robberies in Washington State That Targeted Asian Families
SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — A grand jury charged two men with Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) for reportedly leading a violent gang that attacked people all over Washington.
Irah M. Sok, 36, was killed in her home in August 2022. Kevin Thissel, 28, and Chris Johnson, 23, are in jail on federal charges related to the crime. Officials say that Thissel has been in jail since April and Johnson has been in jail since 2022 on separate charges.
The men will be charged in state court with first-degree murder, second-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree burglary, first-degree robbery, first-degree theft of a firearm, and illegal possession of a firearm.
The US attorney, Tessa Gorman, said that Thissel and Johnson were charged with RICO crimes for “leading and participating in a violent gang that terrorized from South King County to Snohomish County to Skagit County.”
Gorman said the men scared families and kids by robbing, breaking in, taking, and killing them. Police said that Thissel and Johnson led a group of criminals who dressed in dark clothes and masks and broke into homes when they knew people would be there. When the guys broke in late at night or early in the morning, Gorman said, they would often kick in the door and say they were police. Gorman said that once the suspects got inside the house, they used zip ties to hold the victims down and searched the house for items. Some of the people who died were only 9 years old.
Gorman said that this was the first RICO charge arrest in the western district of Washington in 17 years. She said that the RICO act, which was created in 1970, is a useful tool for police who want to break up organized crime. Gorman said that if each case had been looked into separately instead of all at once, the police would not have been able to see the whole pattern of violent crimes.
Gorman said, “They scared families.” “They made kids scared in our neighborhoods all over the western district of Washington.” They stole, broke in, kidnapped, and killed people to do it. They used fear to keep their victims in line and to spread fear in our neighborhoods.
Police say Sok died of a gunshot wound during the dangerous home invasion in August 2022. Police in Snohomish County say that three guys broke into a house on the 2600 block of 96th Street Southeast, which is just east of Interstate 5 and near Everett Mall in unincorporated Everett.
The men were all dressed up or wearing masks. One of them “possibly had his face painted,” a SCSO source told KING 5 crews at the scene.
Police say the men who broke into the house went to the second floor and shot and killed Sok.
They said the husband went to a neighbor’s house and called 911 after the thieves ran away from the house on foot. At the time, there was also a child in the house. The police said the husband and child were fine.
The criminal group was said to be targeting Asian-American families in their run of violent crimes by investigators.
“The break in this case shows how dedicated and persistent our detective is in solving crimes in our community. This brings us one step closer to justice for Irah and her family,” said Susanna Johnson, sheriff of Snohomish County. “This senseless act of violence had a big effect on our community. It left a young child without his mother.” This study was very complicated.
The investigation is still going on, and anyone with information should call the 425-388-3845 Major Crimes Tipline for the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.