Driver arrested after sending child, adult to hospital in Burien crash

A man is dead and 4-year-old child is in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center following a violent crash in Burien on Sunday.

King County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating it as a homicide. They say a suspect in a stolen vehicle smashed into the victim’s car at a high rate of speed.

“These were just two people driving on a Sunday morning here and may or may not have even seen the stolen truck coming at them,” said Deputy Mike Mellis.

It all started when law enforcement noticed a stolen Dodge pickup just after 11:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Deputies followed the truck until the suspect sped up and drove away.

Ten minutes later, dispatch got a 911 call warning of a crash on 128th Street in Burien. Officials say the same truck had hit a jeep, carrying a man and child.

“I think this a situation of irresponsible people who don’t care just doing what they want. Just despite the risk for anybody else,” Mellis said.

The suspect ran away from the scene. KIRO 7 spoke with a resident, who wants to remain anonymous, says she saw him in her backyard.

“I turned around and then that’s when I seen him landing into our neighbor’s backyard,” she explained.

This Burien resident says she didn’t realize at first who the stranger was, but spotted him just before noon Sunday.

She confronted him and asked what he was doing there.

“He looked at me and he said ‘I’m just trying to get home.’ But automatically, you don’t get home through other people’s property so that’s when I called 911.”

What she didn’t know yet at the time, was the deadly and violent crash just feet away from her home.

“That’s when I saw the car accident and I kind of just put two and two together.”

Deputies are still searching for the suspect. It’s left neighbors feeling unsettled.

“I mean, after this I don’t think we’ll ever go back to feeling 100% comfortable in our own neighborhood,” she said.

After experiencing a possible brush with the suspect firsthand, she says she’s learned a lesson.

“If you see something, say something. Don’t hesitate, use your gut. If something in you is telling you something is wrong, do something about it.”

Shortly before 5 a.m. Monday, King County deputies were tracking the suspect in Thurston County along I-5 in Tumwater.

Washington State Patrol Troopers from Thurston and Lewis counties were given the description and license plate of the white Toyota Corolla driven by the suspect.

A trooper found the Toyota parked in the southbound I-5 Maytown Rest Area. The suspect was inside the car sleeping.

The driver was taken into custody and was later booked into the King County Jail on vehicular homicide charges.