LOS ANGELES — Prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle have filed charges against two men accused of targeting Asian families in the Seattle area in a series of violent burglaries and a murder in the summer of 2022.
Kevin Thissel, 28, and Christopher Johnson, 23, were part of a gang that broke into homes in the middle of the night and bound families with zip ties while their homes were ransacked, according to an unsealed indictment filed in U.S. District Court.
Prosecutors allege that Thissel and Johnson were involved in the August 2022 murder of Irah Mercel Sok in Everett.
“The primary motive of this band of robbers was money – they stole whatever valuables they could loot from these homes. Tragically, they shot and killed a young mother while her seven-year-old child lay in bed next to her,” said Tessa Gorman, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington. “This indictment seeks to hold them accountable for the terror they brought to our community.”
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Thissel and Johnson each face charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Gorman said this is the first RICO indictment in the Western District of Washington in 17 years.
Gorman added that Thissel and Johnson are the suspected leaders of the gang, but that federal and local investigators are actively working to find other members involved in the robberies and murder.
“These men targeted specific families that they robbed,” Gorman said. “To create a climate of fear, these men broke into their homes in the middle of the night. They were dressed in black, posing as police officers and had guns drawn.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard Collodi, who heads the FBI’s Seattle field office, said investigators deployed specialized teams to identify phone records that he said provided “irrefutable evidence” of the defendants’ involvement in the robberies.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Thissel and Johnson are linked to burglaries in Mount Vernon, Burien, Kent and Everett.
Snohomish County District Attorney Jason Cummings said at a news conference Thursday afternoon that he expects murder charges to be filed in Snohomish County Superior Court in addition to the federal charges.
The federal RICO charges can carry a sentence of life in prison.
This is a developing story. Check back later for updates.
