The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office this week charged Dedrick D. Mitchell, 29, with the following in a horrific sexual assault incident that happened in Normandy Park on Oct. 23, 2023:
- Kidnapping in the First Degree
- Rape in the First Degree
As we previously reported, on Oct. 23, 2023, Mitchell abducted his victim in the 1900 block of SW 170th Street in Normandy Park, “with the intent to facilitate the commission of Rape in the First Degree and fled thereafter,” according to Prosecutors.
On Feb. 1, 2024, the Normandy Park Police Department formally arrested Mitchell for Kidnapping 1st Degree, Rape 1st Degree and Assault 2nd Degree.
The defendant is alleged to have kidnapped the victim by gunpoint, driven her to a dark location and forced her to provide oral sex, twice. The victim was able to get out of the car and run to a neighbor’s house for help.
After the defendant’s identify was confirmed through DNA testing, law enforcement located him in the King County Jail being held on bail for various Assault and Robbery charges, also involving a gun. The defendant was interviewed and stated he did not know the victim, but did not deny the charges.
The Prosecuting Attorney has requested bail set in the amount of $500,000, the same amount set by the King County District Court at the time of first appearance. The State believes that Mitchell will not appear in response to a summons, will commit a violent sexual offense, or will interfere with witnesses or the administration of justice.
The State has also requested that the Court order a pretrial sexual assault protection order prohibiting contact with the victim., order to surrender weapons, do not possess firearms or dangerous weapons, do not leave the State of Washington without specific approval by the Court, and no criminal activity.
Mitchell has a criminal history that includes convictions for various offenses, including Trespass, Inflicting Corporal Injury on a Spouse, Unauthorized Use of Another Person’s ID, Concealed Carry of a Weapon, Exhibited Firearm with Intent to Resist Arrest, False Imprisonment, and Battery.
If found guilty of the current charges, he could face severe penalties, including imprisonment, fines, and other legal consequences.
“This arrest would not have been possible without the assistance of our Law Enforcement partners,” Normandy Park Police Chief Dan Yourskoski said. “We would like to thank the Puyallup Police Department, the Seattle Police Department, the King County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab, and the King County Prosecutor’s Office for their assistance with this investigation.”
Below are details from charging documents:
- On Oct. 23, 2023 at approximately 6:57 p.m., Normandy Park Officers were dispatched to the area of the 1600 Block of SW 170th Street for a report of a missing adult female.
- The reporting party stated that his girlfriend had gone out to walk the dog but had not returned home for over an hour. He also stated that she did not take her cell phone, and is usually only gone for 10 minutes when she walks the dog.
- Officers then conducted an area check for her.
- At approximately 7:22 p.m., dispatch notified officers that the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) had broadcast that a blue sedan had fled eastbound on SW 170th Street, and was associated to a sexual assault and attempted abduction with a gun involved.
- At 7:30 p.m., KCSO Deputies requested the assistance of Normandy Park Police in the 1900 block of SW 170th Street as the sexual assault and abduction had occurred in the City of Normandy Park and not in the City of Burien.
- A Normandy Park Officer arrived, where KCSO Deputies had located the victim who had been the victim of a sexual assault and abduction at gunpoint.
- At this time, a Deputy stated that the victim was out walking her dog in the area of 16th Ave SW / SW 170th Street when she was confronted by a black male subject, 5’05” with a maroon sweater and a jacket, who asked the victim for directions to a school.
- He asked the victim to move closer and displayed a small black gun. He then told her to get in the passenger seat of this car (blue sedan). The victim then got in the vehicle with her dog. The suspect then drove to a dead end area and told her to perform oral sex on him.
- As the victim was scared, she ended up doing it. He then let her out in the area of the 2100 block of SW 170th Street, and she started screaming. The victim then started knocking on a couple of residential doors in the area. The victim arrived at one residence because the lights were on. The homeowners provided help.
- The victim was taken from the scene to St. Anne Hospital in Burien for a medical evaluation and a sexual assault forensic exam.
- The victim stated that, on Oct. 23, 2023 she left her house at around 6:10 p.m. to take her dog for a walk. The victim recalls this time specifically because she placed a Door Dash order at 6:08 p.m., just prior to leaving the house.
- She walked northbound on 16th Ave SW until approximately SW 168th Street and then turned and walked back toward her residence.
- Near the corner of 16th Ave SW and SW 170th Street, she saw a blue four-door sedan stopped at the side of the road with the engine running near the no outlet sign on 16th Ave SW. The driver of the vehicle, whom she described as a black male wearing a black COVID style facemask and a maroon hoodie, rolled down the window and asked her for directions.
- While she was trying to help him with directions, the driver then opened the door, pointed a gun at her and told her to come closer or he would shoot her.
- The victim moved closer and the male patted down her clothing, but she was not carrying anything and did not have a cell phone or a wallet. The male then told her that since she did not have anything she should give him oral sex. He then told her to get in the back seat and when she refused, he made her get into the driver’s seat with her dog and told her to climb over to the passenger seat. He then put the gun to her head and told her to keep her head down. The male then drove the vehicle a short distance and parked again. At that time, the victim was not sure where exactly they had driven because her head was down, but she believed they had travelled westbound on SW 170th.
- Once the car was stopped, the victim asked the male to take her home. He told her that he would take her home when he was finished. He then pulled his pants down and forced her to give him oral sex. She again asked to be taken home but the male told her that he was not done yet, and forced her to start giving him more oral sex.
- Fearing for her safety, she pretended to have a panic attack so that she could sit up and figure out how to escape. When the male tried to move to get on top of her, the victim grabbed his hand, which was still holding the gun, opened the passenger door, and started screaming.
- The male told her to get out and she ran and hid in some nearby bushes until the vehicle left. The victim ran to several nearby houses to try to get help, but no one answered. She then ran to a house that had lights on, and the homeowners called 911 for her. She was later able to identify the location where the sexual assault had taken place to be at the intersection of SW 170th Street and 21st Ave SW. She stated that at several points during the sexual assault, the male was filming her with his cellphone.
- Investigators were able to obtain surveillance video from several residences along SW 170th Street. The homeowner of one provided investigators with footage from his Ring camera which displayed the victim. walking from the west with her dog in her arms to his driveway. She then walked to the front door and then after no one answered the door, she appeared to leave the property, walking to the east on SW 170th. According to the timestamp on the Ring camera, the victim arrived at this house at 6:56 p.m.
- Another homeowner provided investigators with footage from his surveillance camera that shows what is believed to be the suspect vehicle driving on SW 170th Street past the residence several times around the time of the sexual assault. Based on a review of the video, it appears that the suspect vehicle passes the camera for the first time, travelling westbound, at 6:13 p.m. The vehicle next passes the camera at 6:14 p.m., this time traveling eastbound. Then at 6:20 p.m., the vehicle travels westbound on SW 170th again.
- Based on the sequence of events described above, it is believed that at 6:20 p.m. the victim was in the vehicle with the suspect, traveling from the location where she was abducted to the location of the sexual assault.
- The vehicle is then believed to have passed the residence a final time, after the assault, eastbound at approximately 6:55 p.m.
- On Oct. 24, 2023 at approximately 1:08 p.m., an Officer of the Normandy Park Police Department responded to St. Anne Hospital and collected the Sexual Assault Kit (SAK) along with the victim’s clothing and eye glasses. The Officer entered the SAK and clothing into evidence at the Normandy Park Police Department, and it was submitted to the Washington State Patrol Vancouver Crime Laboratory on Oct. 30, 2023.
- On Jan. 1, 2024 a sergeant received a report from the Washington State Patrol Vancouver Crime Laboratory in reference to the Sexual Assault Kit (SAK) that had been previously submitted. The contents of the Results and Conclusions indicated the presence of male DNA on the perineal, oral, face, breasts, and perioral swabs.
- The DNA profile obtained from the face swabs is a mixture consistent with originating from two individuals. a) the victim is assumed as a contributor to the mixture, and b) the DNA profile obtained from the remaining component is from an unknown male source designated as Individual A.
- The DNA profile of Individual A was entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) and searched. A match between the DNA profile of Individual A and Dedrick Deshaun Mitchell was declared.
- The Sgt. reviewed Mitchell’s records and saw that he had an FBI number which matches the number provided in the CODIS hit described in the crime lab report above.
- On Jan. 5, 2023, the Sgt. obtained a search warrant for two sets of buccal cheek swabs from Mitchell for DNA comparison testing. King County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Berns, approved the warrant. The Sgt. and a Detective with the King County Sheriff’s Office went to the King County Jail in Seattle to execute the search warrant (the Detective is investigating a child luring case where Mitchell is possibly a suspect). While in an interview room, Mitchell was provided with a copy of the warrant, which he read for himself. As Mitchell was reading the warrant, the Sgt. noticed that his hands were visibly shaking as he read the charges of Rape 1st Degree and Kidnapping 1st Degree.
- The Sgt. explained to Mitchell that he was investigating an incident that had occurred in Normandy Park on Oct. 23, 2023. Mitchell stated that he was not sure where Normandy Park was located. Although the Sgt. attempted to explain where the city was geographically located, Mitchell stated that he was still unsure.
The defendant’s next court date is his arraignment scheduled for Feb. 15, 2024 at the King County Courthouse.