by Detective Valerie Carson 

Seattle Police Department

Police arrested a man after he placed an apparently lifeless body, wrapped in a blanket, into the back of an SUV Sunday night in West Seattle. After SPD’s SWAT Team served a warrant at his residence – causing an extended closure of a major arterial – the possible victim was found alive at Harborview Medical Center.

At 4:42 p.m., a resident in the 4000 block of 35th Avenue Southwest reported his neighbor had placed a woman’s body – wrapped in a blanket or rug – into the back of an SUV and drove away. The caller saw this on footage from his home surveillance system and shared the video with police. After officers watched the video and identified the neighbor, they learned he had a felony robbery warrant.

A short time later, the caller reported the SUV from the video was back at the residence.

Homicide Detectives were briefed on the circumstances, and they wrote a warrant to enter the home. SWAT officers served the warrant and arrested the 35-year-old suspect.

Detectives spoke with the man, who said the woman he had carried out of the home had been overdosing on narcotics, so he took her to Harborview Medical Center. Police went to HMC and verified the woman was alive and receiving treatment.

After verifying the suspect’s account of the circumstances, officers booked the man into King County Jail solely for his robbery warrant.