Published April 7 2015
Song Wang, a suspect in the murder of a woman in a Bellevue apartment on March 31, was arrested early today (Tuesday, April 7) at a rest stop along Interstate 5 in northern California. Wang was wanted by the Bellevue Police for the murder of 37-year-old Kittaporn Saosawatsri at the Avalon Meydenbauer apartments downtown.
At approximately midnight on Tuesday morning a highway worker with the California Department of Transportation noticed a vehicle parked in a highway rest area in Siskiyou County, Calif. When the worker observed the occupant of the vehicle, he immediately recognized him as a wanted person from previous reports.
U.S. Marshals, officers from the California Highway Patrol and deputies with the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office, responded quickly and took Wang into custody.
On March 31 at 9:19 p.m., the Bellevue Fire Department responded to the Avalon Meydenbauer Apartments for a reported fire alarm and discovered a small fire and a deceased woman inside a unit on the sixth floor. The victim had injuries consistent with homicidal violence. Police detectives and arson investigators with the Fire Department are conducting an investigation.
"I would like to sincerely thank our federal partners with the U.S. Marshals service, working as part of the Pacific Northwest Violent Offenders Task Force, as well as the California Highway Patrol and the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office, for their help in this case," said Police Chief Steve Mylett. "It ensured that a dangerous suspect is now behind bars."
Extradition proceedings to bring Wang back to Washington are expected to begin soon.