Seattle police are asking for the public’s help identifying a man who violently attacked and robbed an 88-year-old woman outside her Rainier Beach home last month.
According to the Seattle Police Department, the assault happened on the night of Oct. 13 in the 9900 block of 64th Avenue South.
The woman had been cleaning household items on her back porch when a stranger approached, demanded her belongings, and attacked when she refused.
Police said the man beat her repeatedly, dragged her into her garage, and continued the assault before stealing her jewelry.
“It could have been me, it could’ve been anybody. I just think this is someone that shouldn’t have on the streets,” said neighbor Chris Potts.
During the attack, investigators said the suspect bit off one of the woman’s fingers.
“All we heard the cops tell the fire department is, ‘she’s missing a finger’. My daughter and my daughter are like, what?” Potts explained.
The victim screamed for help and later told officers she thought the suspect “was going to try to kill her.”
“This is one of the more brutal and heinous assaults I have seen. This was an 88-year-old woman and of course she was seriously injured and assaulted during this robbery,” said Detective Eric Muñoz with Seattle Police.
She was taken to Harborview Medical Center with serious injuries to her head and hand.
Multiple law enforcement agencies — including officers from Seattle, Burien, and Tukwila, along with the King County Sheriff’s Office — searched the area for the suspect but did not locate him.
Detectives said the suspect is believed to be a man in his 30s.
The Seattle Police Crime Scene Investigation Unit processed the scene, and robbery detectives interviewed the woman at the hospital.
Police have since released photos of the suspect and are asking anyone with information to call the SPD Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000. Anonymous tips are accepted.
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