Two men, one 11-year-old boy, arrested after serial robberies at gas stations in King County

SEATTLE— A 21-year-old, 19-year-old and 11-year-old wanted in connection with a series of robberies at gas stations in Seattle and near Tukwila have been arrested.

Seattle police said the group of suspects, wearing face masks and dark clothing, robbed four different convenience stores over the course of an hour and a half early Friday morning. Each robbery occurred in south and southwest Seattle between 5:25 a.m. and 6:50 a.m.

The robberies took place at the following locations and times:

• 5:25 a.m. at a Shell station in the 7200 block of East Marginal Way South.
• 5:37 a.m., at the Arco station in the 2800 block of Rainier Avenue South.
• 6:40 a.m., at the Space Age station in the 7500 block of 35th Avenue Southwest.
• 6:50 a.m., at the Shell station in the 4500 block of Fauntleroy Way Southwest.

Police said the suspects entered the convenience stores armed with firearms and then stole merchandise and cash before fleeing in stolen vehicles.

KOMO News obtained security footage of the robbery that took place at the Shell station on East Marginal Way. The video shows one of the suspects brandishing a firearm that appears to be an assault weapon.

From there, footage shows two clerks hiding in the back room while being threatened at gunpoint.

“I thought he was going to shoot me, I’m going to die, that’s why I was scared,” said one of the clerks who was robbed.

Seattle police said the suspects fled with stolen merchandise and cash. No one was injured.

A blue Kia sedan, believed to be related to the robberies, was recovered at 16th Avenue South and East Marginal Way South. A witness reported seeing the car driving erratically before hitting the curb.

Officers found the vehicle disabled and unoccupied. The car was an unreported stolen vehicle and will be examined for evidence.

King County Sheriff’s Office said Friday evening they responded to two armed robberies, one at 8 p.m. at the Skyway Shell gas station at 11809 Renton Avenue S and another 15 minutes later at the Shell gas station at 9525 14th Avenue S.

Seattle police said the same suspects committed another armed robbery in a surrounding jurisdiction Friday evening around 8:30 p.m. The suspects were chased by Tukwila police in a silver Hyundai to Seattle’s First Hill neighborhood.

According to Seattle Police, the pursuit spanned multiple jurisdictions and involved several agencies, including the King County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol and the Tukwila Police Department.

The suspects stopped the car around Spring Street and Harvard Avenue and continued fleeing.

Officers from the Community Response Group (CRG), South, East, Southwest and K9 Unit monitored the area with assistance from King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) Guardian One, KCSO K9 and Tukwila PD.

All three suspects were taken into custody without incident and no firearms were recovered.

Residents who saw it all happen said it was disturbing to see how young these suspects are.

“They’re taking it like they’re playing a video game because they didn’t look scared, like they even held their arms up and walked back like ‘Okay, you got me,’ like the game is over,” Karen Evonuik said.

Two men were booked into the King County Jail and the boy was booked into Judge Patricia H. Clark Children & Family Justice Center. All three are in custody for investigation into theft.

The Seattle Police Robbery Unit is conducting the investigation. If anyone has any information, please contact the Violent Crimes Tip Line at (206) 233-5000.