A memorial has grown outside Harry’s Fine Foods (Image: CHS)
(Image: CHS)
The Capitol Hill chef stabbed and killed in an altercation on the Capitol Hill Station light rail platform Saturday has been identified as Corey Bellett.
The 37-year-old died of injuries suffered in the stabbing on the subway platform 200 feet below Broadway.
Seattle Fire responded to provide emergency aid to the victim and transport him to Harborview but Bellett succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Seattle Police were unable to immediately locate the suspect seen on Sound Transit security video fleeing with knife still in hand following the just before 6 PM assault. The department announced an arrest in the case Monday night after a U.S. Marshals task force tracked down the suspect and took him into custody in Eatonville earlier in the day. A hearing to determine probable cause and to continue to hold the 26-year-old in jail was scheduled for a Tuesday hearing.
Bellett — A fundraiser has been set up to help the victim’s family
Prosecutors say Shawn Patrick Moore will remain jailed on $3 million bail and a charging decision in the case is expected Thursday. The county prosecutor says Moore has not been charged by its office previously.
In the documents filed for the bail hearing, police say video evidence shows the victim brush by the suspect and another man as he moved down the station escalator Saturday evening. Police say the suspect and the man accompanying him then confronted Bellett on the platform and a fight ensued in which it appeared that Moore pulled a knife from his pocket and began stabbing Bellett. Police say Bellett fell onto the northbound track where Moore allegedly continued the assault before fleeing the station.
Police say the second man later contacted police to provide information about the suspect.
A coworker at Capitol Hill restaurant Harry’s Fine Foods where Bellett served as a sous chef said the veteran food and drink worker was headed home after his Saturday brunch shift when the altercation occurred and leaves behind a grieving partner.
Police said they were investigating what led to the stabbing. Capitol Hill Station was closed for the rest of Saturday night as police gathered evidence in what was described as a large crime scene on the platform and into the transit tunnel. Trains were unable to run through the station due to officer safety concerns, a Sound Transit spokesperson said.
Sound Transit says there will be more security personnel in place around the station for the time being. “To reassure riders about the safety of the system, they can expect to see an increased security presence in the coming days,” a statement from Sound Transit reads. “We encourage anyone who feels unsafe or needs security support, we to text Sound Transit Security at 206-398-5268.”
Sound Transit says it is spending more than $40 million a year on security contracts and has 500 Transit Security officers in total across its system in addition to more than 65 King County Sheriff’s officers who serve as the agency’s transit police.
Harry’s, meanwhile, called Bellett “a valued teammate and devoted individual who infused his passion into each and every dish he crafted.” A memorial of messages and flowers has grown outside the Bellevue Ave restaurant.
UPDATE: A fundraiser has been set up by a family friend to help Bellett’s wife and family through the tragedy.
“Corey was a friend, a son, a brother, a new and deeply loving husband, an incredible chef who was wildly creative, talented, and insanely hardworking. “A silly, energetic goofball who loved and supported his friends and family deeply,” the friend writes. “We want to do all we can to lift his family up in these times, and remove as much of the burden from his incredible wife as we possibly can.”
UPDATE x2: Seattle City Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth has issued a statement on the killing:
The recent stabbing on Capitol Hill in Seattle is tragic and senseless act of violence. My thoughts and deep prayers are with the victim’s friends and family, and his work family at Harry’s Fine Foods.
Public safety is my number one priority for District 3 and all of Seattle. Since taking office, I have been meeting with representatives from SPD, the Mayor’s Office, and community groups to implement short-term and long-term sustainable solutions to our public safety crisis. Thank you to our law enforcement officers whose quick work and expert coordination led to a prompt arrest in this case.
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A horrific loss for our community. RIP to Corey. Watch out for yourselves & for one another. <3
“Police say the second man later contacted police to provide information about the suspect.”
Thank you “second man”. Idk if this guy was motivated by having a conscience, the awareness that he could be seen as an accomplice, or fear of the suspect himself, but I think the whole neighborhood is breathing a sigh of relief that the guy was caught. Heartbreaking for the loved ones of the victim though.
According to the Seattle Times report, the 2nd man reported the stabbing at the time of the incident; he called 911. He then left the station, where the suspect caught up with him and threatened him if he talked about the incident. But he called police after he heard the victim had died. He led police to where the suspect threw away the box cutter.
Story also says the victim and suspect “exchanged words” when the victim passed them on the escalator. Perhaps that’s what set the suspect off.
Times is working with the same court documents I reported on — a couple important clarifications:
According to the Seattle Times report, the 2nd man reported the stabbing at the time of the incident; he called 911. He then left the station, where the suspect caught up with him and threatened him if he talked about the incident. But he called police after he heard the victim had died. He led police to where the suspect threw away the box cutter.
This was all information attributed to the second man and his account of how the situation played out — unlike the descriptions I included which were based on a police officer’s documentation of the security video he reviewed.
Story also says the victim and suspect “exchanged words” when the victim passed them on the escalator. Perhaps that’s what set the suspect off.
For what it is worth, the police officer reported words were exchanged but officer’s report indicate this exchange happened when the suspect and the second man caught up with the victim on the platform or, at least, after the initial run-in. I just want to clarify that the report doesn’t say they specifically “exchanged words” at the start of the incident.
Thanks for the fact-checking and clarification on previous comments. We appreciate being kept up to date on this sad and senseless crime in our neighborhood. It’s so sad to learn that he was recently married and just adopted two dogs. Just heartbreaking.
The victim passed someone on the escalator? Sheesh–people do that all the time. It shouldn’t cost a life!
Very sickening that we have wild vermin amongst us who can kill you because you might have bumped into them.
Then there’s the “security” at stations. They wouldn’t have been able to do much. Need to step it up and hire more transit sheriffs like some other cities. Otherwise, there is only so much Paul Blart can do.
Two days after this tragedy, I watched a guy behaving erratically, yelling and lunging at people and darting in front of cars at the station entrance on Broadway and John, all while a so-called security guard just stood there staring at his phone. What are we paying these people to do, exactly?
A Seattle Times piece on this crime said the security guards have “limited” authority to detain people. About all they can do is try to break up confrontations, and ask people to leave if they are causing problems. But not much more than that. They have to call police to have someone arrested. Perhaps the guard you saw was in the process of doing that (contacting police).
Or, Boo, perhaps the security guard was doing what I often see these kiddie cops doing: playing on his phone or reading things on the internet. Sound Transit wastes tens of millions of dollars a year being too cheap to recruit, hire and train a real public safety force. If university campuses can do it, so can Sound Transit. The trains and busses need lots of uniformed, WELL-TRAINED officers who can arrest and deploy tasers, etc. as/when needed.
Sound Transit’s constant assertions that the system is safe and that they spend X on security and have X number of officers is insulting and tone deaf.
Clearly, ST execs and office staff don’t use the system. Fire Sound Transit and build a new agency altogether. Bare minimum, build a proper public safety department with enoufgh qualified staff to create/maintain order on the system.
I remember feeling so sad about Shannon Harps. I didn’t know her at all. But it felt like such a dark and brutal act for the “Gayborhood.”
That was then.
This is now: RIP Corey.
I still think of Shannon everytime I pass her building. That one rocked me to my core. And so little has been done since her murder to keep crazy people locked up and off the streets.
Thank God we have a city council person who actually addresses issues that happen in our district.
That’s pretty funny. The only thing she did here was praise SPD, who didn’t really do anything. It was the Seattle Fire (who only got a 5% raise) and US Marshals who did the leg work.
You think the SPD has the authority to arrest someone in Etonville then do you……
Is this a serious comment? To date Hollingsworth has done nothing. I’m not a Sawant fan but I’ve seen little from Hollingsworth’s office to inspire confidence.
When was the last time councilwoman Hollingsworth walked down Broadway?
You know she’s only been on this job for like 4 months, Right? She has already addressed more issues that happen in our district then our last so-called representative did in all the terms she served combined. Don’t kick a gift horse in the mouth.
She has acknowledged them, and she has taken no action, nor proposed any solutions.
addressed more issues like giving the criminally corrupt SPD a huge raise, right?
She was right behind me on the escalators exiting the light rail station on Broadway one week ago, so at least within the last week.
Never miss an inappropriate chance to throw around baseless nonsense to make a political point.
Nice work, SPD!
The immoral thug should, at the very least, receive a life sentence without parole, but the death penalty would still be too good for him.
Yeah! Way to take the phone call that told them everything and get shown where the box cutter is! Lovely work!
I regret to inform you that the police aren’t omniscient.
Sadly, they also don’t do the work to cover their knowledge gaps. They have to be hand held to work on a crime, and, even then, they may not come help you.
I will definitely miss you brother…we had some memorable times at LG…I can’t believe that you’re gone …didn’t knew that our conversation while you were hiking on Thursday was the last. Thank you for everything and may your beautiful soul rest in peace..the fish are fine and the lilies will always remind me of you.
Sorry for your loss :( This is beyond sad and unacceptable.
Than you
Sound Transit is making a lot out of how much they are spending on security (ie, “we’re not sitting on our hands, we’re SPENDING MILLIONS!”) while the truth is that their security for the most part don’t really DO anything. Their hope is that people will see a uniform and not act badly (according to the Times story there were 4 of them on the platform when this happened). What ST isn’t responding to, and never will, is the continued call for turnstiles (including from the transit union), which would reduce the number of bad actors that enter the stations and the trains in the first place.
David, the problem with turnstiles is that they will only work in light rail STATIONS. South of Mount Baker, all stops are walk up. Yes, they COULD put turnstiles in those stations, but what’s going to stop anyone from walking on the tracks and stepping up on the platform to commit crimes anywhere they choose in the ST system?
By your logic since there is no single solution then we should abandon an approach of additive solutions?
The Capitol Hill light rail station entrances need turnstiles, and we need them now.
The station should have included them from day one, the only reason why they aren’t there is because of the ongoing push to make light rail free.
The news and police keep saying that Corey died at the hospital but I saw them bring him out on a stretcher. His face was gray and the paramedics didn’t seem too concerned about trying to revive him at that point. They put him in the ambulance and then the ambulance just sat there. I think he died on scene.
Maybe Justin and this blog can investigate further. Lord knows The Stranger and Seattle Times prove useless in their (lack of) investigative reporting these days and don’t get me started on KUOW’s silence on so many things that happen in town.
Can you add a link to the fundraiser in the article? Would like to know where to contribute. This is the most horrific thing since Eina Kwon.
I’ve seen other cities start to supplement the renta cops with actual city police or the transit duty sheriffs. Of course that’s a bit short handed these days but a mix of plain clothes and uniformed people who can legally actually do something w/authority would help. On transit at least.
What ever the exchange was, I doubt we will hear the truth about it. And that’s gonna eat the victim’s family up the most. A guy who carries around a box cutter and thinks that “that” is how altercations generally should turn out, does not accept responsibility. And I hope they throw the book at him. He chased that man down and … if this fight had taken place on the escalator we would have a totally different story. But it seems that distance was created by the victim after the escalator interaction, so self defense is out of the question.
I’m a member of the family of Corey Bellett, this was an execution, plain and simple. If any of you on this blog know anyone who witnessed this attack. Please have them reach out to me. I will put you in contact with the detective that had Shawn Patrick Moore II arrested. This was a heinous vicious attack on Corey and we want this individual to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law for 2nd degree murder & witness intimidation. The video of the attack has not been released at this time but will be shortly in the next week or two. It’s under the FOIA legislation, graphic and horrific. View at your own discretion.
Best to reach out to me at: [email protected].
Our family wants justice for Corey!
God Bless you all!