Bellevue cops seeking surveillance video, public's help in trying to solve city's first murder of year

BELLEVUE -- Police detectives hope surveillance video will help them find the killer of a woman who was found Tuesday night inside a Bellevue apartment believed to have been intentionally set on fire.

Firefighters were the first on the scene Tuesday night, responding to a fire alarm and smoke coming from a sixth-floor apartment at the Avalon Meydenbauer Apartments at 10410 NE 2nd St.



Dozens of people evacuated the apartment building.

“We know there is an alarm and we got out,” resident Jason Lee said.

Lee found out Wednesday that one of his neighbors, a woman on the sixth floor, was a victim of a homicide.

“That's so surprising,” Lee said.

Firefighters discovered the woman's body when they rushed to put out the fire in the apartment, but said the fire didn’t kill her. Bellevue police spokesman Seth Tyler said she had "injuries that were consistent with homicidal violence."

Detectives are questioning others who live inside the apartment complex that spans two city blocks.

“It does add more work for our detectives because we have to talk to everyone,” Tyler said.

They are asking anyone who noticed anything suspicious in the area at about 9 p.m. Tuesday to call them

“Whether it be in the parking garage, stairwell, hallway, we would like to hear from them,” Tyler said.

Police say they have to look through surveillance footage from inside the complex and they are also reaching out to nearby businesses.

“They wanted to know if any of our cameras have street view,” Tropical Café owner Ming Yu said.

After investigators checked out his surveillance video, Yu says he told his employees to be extra careful.

“Just trying to be safe and make sure you have two or more people when you open and close the store,” Yu said.

That's because a killer is still on the loose, in an area where crimes like this are rare.

Police say it appeared the apartment was set on fire and there is an arson investigation under way  to confirm that.

The victim's identity has not been released, and police have not said how she was killed.