Susie Ko
By Charles Lam
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
The search for Susie Ko’s possible killers ended last Wednesday, Oct. 10 as Ko’s blue Subaru station wagon was found in SeaTac, along with the couple who had stolen it. Darnell Washington and his wife Tania, both from California, were arrested after a short car chase during which they rammed multiple police cruisers. The chase started when a SeaTac police officer failed to stop the couple after the car’s license plate came up as stolen. The chase then led officers from the 18800 block of 32nd Ave S. to 188th and Pacific Highway S., said SeaTac police. The arrest ends their West Coast crime spree, which started in August when Darnell broke out of the San Bernardino County Jail in California, with the help of his wife.
The couple is also wanted for a non-fatal shooting of a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy.
The car’s owner, Susie Ko, a retired teacher and mother of four, was found dead in her home in Hercules, Calif., by neighbors on Friday, Oct. 5. Her car was missing from the garage. The crime set off a nation-wide search that involved the FBI and was fueled by the Internet.
To help find their mother’s killer, Ko’s children turned to Facebook and social news-sharing website Reddit.
A Facebook event with information about the car was quickly made and spread like wildfire. The event currently has over 200,000 invitees who have seen the details of the crime.
In addition to the Facebook event, several Reddit posts were created, reaching the front page of the website, which is viewed by billions of people each month.
Reddit user sikomanic, who claimed to be one of Ko’s children, said, “The beauty of the Internet is the speed in which we can reach our 6 degrees of separation and if we can do it for cats on treadmills, we can do it for my mother. Each day, we visit our morning blogs and see bad news. This is a chance to serve up some web justice the way our generation knows how.”
Darnell and Tania Washington are currently being held in King County Jail without bail, under investigation for assault, vehicle theft, and unlawful possession of arms. Murder charges will be presented to the Contra Costa County Attorney’s Office late this week. (end)
For more information, visit www.welovesusieko.com.
Charles Lam can be reached at charles@nwasianweekly.com.