John Jefferson
Insets: Suspect Richard Sitzlack and Seattle bus driver Shawn Yim (Seattle Police Department/King County Metro Transit). Background: Richard Sitzlack being captured by Seattle Police (SPD).
An argument over a window fogging up on a Seattle bus allegedly led to the driver being maced and then stabbed to death by a passenger, who was caught using public transit again days later — casually snoozing next to other riders, according to police.
Richard Sitzlack, 53, was arrested early Saturday morning and charged with second-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of King County Metro Coach driver Shawn Yim last Wednesday along his Route 70 bus route near the intersection of 15th Avenue Northeast and Northeast 41st Street, according to the Seattle Police Department. Yim, 59, was attempting to keep a window open on the bus to prevent it from fogging up when Sitzlack began arguing with him over keeping it closed, according to charging documents obtained by The Seattle Times.
Sitzlack was “speaking disparagingly” about Yim when he initially maced him, kicked Yim between his legs and then fled from his bus, Seattle Police reported. Yim called 911 and exited after Sitzlack, telling the dispatcher he needed authorities to come help him as soon as possible.
“Yes, I need a police [officer] here at UW, U-District, Campus Parkway, please, I just got assaulted,” Yim said, according to the 911 transcript. “Hurry please. He’s fleeing.”
Surveillance video from the area shows Sitzlack turning around and running at Yim before a tussle ensues, according to cops. The two men began wrestling with one another and Yim can be heard telling the 911 dispatcher that he had been stabbed.
“I’ve been stabbed, I’ve been stabbed, hurry please,” Yim said, according to local CBS affiliate KIRO. “I’m dying right now, hurry please, hurry please.”
Authorities say Sitzlack sliced him badly enough to sever an artery and puncture his lungs, which led to Yim dying at the scene. Officers found a bloody knife in a garbage can about a half-block away, per the police report, along with a Winchester knife sheath.
Investigators were able to track down Sitzlack after a witness from the bus came forward and reported speaking to him at a homeless camp called Tent City 3 earlier in the day. A warrant was obtained to search the camp’s records system and a photo of Sitzlack’s driver’s license was found. The witness was allegedly able to identify him as the person who killed Yim.
A manhunt was launched to find Sitzlack, with cops releasing his photos and sharing them with other bus drivers and passengers. A driver of a different King County Metro Transit bus spotted Sitzlack riding and sleeping on his route early Saturday and notified police, according to SPD officials.
“Seattle Police officers were flagged down this morning by a King County Metro driver near 3rd Avenue South and South Main Street, who informed them that Richard Sitzlack was believed to be on board,” the department said in a Saturday press release, which included footage of Sitzlack’s arrest. “Police could see him asleep in the back of the bus. Additional patrol officers were dispatched to the area, and he was arrested at 4:51 a.m.”
While being interviewed by homicide detectives, Sitzlack allegedly admitted to getting into an altercation with Yim, telling them “something to the effect of, ‘I’m sorry for what I did,’” according to his probable cause affidavit. He also acknowledged that visible injuries on his hands and knuckles were from “the fight with the bus driver,” the affidavit says.
Court records show that this is the second killing that Sitzlack’s been tied to over the past two years, with a 2023 fatal stabbing involving his roommate — which unfolded about a mile away from the Yim slaying — being linked to him by Seattle Police.
Sitzlack claimed self-defense in the 2023 death and was never charged.
“Later investigation showed that Sitzlack could have been attacked where he said the attack happened in the apartment,” King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Casey McNerthney told the Seattle Times. “The little inconsistencies initially noted certainly could not overcome the self-defense claim under Washington law. There was nothing so outrageous and inconsistent to the point that Sitzlack’s self-defense claim could be disproven.”
Yim’s death marks the first killing of a Metro Coach driver while on the job in Seattle in 26 years, the Times reports. Seattle Councilmember Rob Saka wrote on Facebook that a candlelight vigil was held on Saturday night to “grieve and honor” Yim.
“This should have never have happened,” Saka said. “As Chair of the Council Transportation Committee, I will work closely with our regional partners to ensure more public transit security for our dedicated drivers and all riders.”
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