Posted on: February 7, 2024, 06:28h.
Last updated on: February 7, 2024, 06:28h.
A Roman Casino employee was robbed by several masked men early Tuesday after she was followed home from the Skyway, Wash. gaming property.
She was confronted by the armed bandits at about 4:30 a.m. in an apparent home invasion in Bellevue, Wash.
“There were five suspects all armed with either handguns or rifles,” Bellevue Police Officer Seth Tyler told Seattle TV station KCPQ.
The suspects may have suspected that the victim actually was gambling at the casino, but it just turns out they were an innocent employee working at this casino,” Tyler said.
Woman, Son Victimized
Jason Hoang, the victim’s son, was inside the apartment sleeping when the robbers arrived after targeting his mother, according to Seattle TV station KIRO.
She just got out of the car and then they just point guns at her and stuff,” Hoang said. “I just woke up and they pointed a gun at my face.”
Some of the men were armed with AK-47 style rifles, he added.
The robbers stole an unspecified amount of money and some watches before they ran toward two nearby SUVs. They drove away before police arrived.
Police didn’t reveal how much cash was taken or the value of the missing watches.
The suspects were still at large as of Wednesday morning.
Neighbor Calls Cops
Both Hoang and his mother were emotionally shaken by the brazen crime.
Hoang was so upset, he couldn’t call police. Another resident at the apartments alerted 911, KIRO reported.
“My neighbor did because I was pretty shocked,” he revealed.
The nearby resident, Ashely Salazar, later told KIRO, “I got woken up from the commotion upstairs and I started texting and asking him, ‘Are you OK?’ What’s going on, sounds crazy up there.”
I saw all these guys running from the apartment and then he called me and said, ‘I just got robbed,’ so then I was like, ‘I’m calling the cops right now,’” she said.
Police arrived and searched the area. They were given video from a doorbell security camera at the apartment complex. It showed some of the crime.
Police didn’t provide a description of the suspects or descriptions of the SUVs.
Hoang’s mother told officers that another casino employee apparently was the victim of a similar crime. No word if that case was investigated by police.
After the robbery, Salazar told KIRO their Factoria, Wash. neighborhood is pretty crime-free.
“I’ve lived here 13 years and we’ve had car prowling, someone had their bike stolen a couple months ago, but that’s about it — nothing like this,” Salazar recalled.
