Bellevue police arrest man with ‘DIRTBAG’ license plate after death, weapons threats

The suspect punched an officer following the threats, which stemmed from road rage at a car wash.

What started as a routine trip to the car wash ended in a melee and an arrest this past Sunday, Bellevue police said in a news release Monday.

At around 3 p.m. Feb. 11, Bellevue police responded to a road rage incident in the parking lot of the Brown Bear car wash in the Factoria neighborhood of Bellevue. While there, police learned that there was a minor rear-end crash involving two vehicles that were waiting in line for the car wash. Officers reported one of the drivers got out of his car to take photos of the damage to the vehicles. The other driver then reportedly got out of his car, pointed a handgun at the victim, and made threats.

When police arrived, the suspect, a 40 year-old Bellevue resident, refused to exit his vehicle or follow the officers’ instructions. Officers attempted to remove the suspect from the vehicle, and the suspect fought, punching one of the officers in the face. The suspect allegedly threatened to kill the police and made disparaging comments about the victim’s perceived ethnicity.

Police used a taser to subdue the suspect, who was arrested. The officer that was punched had a minor injury and was transported to the hospital as a precaution. The suspect’s vehicle, a red Chevrolet Camaro with a custom license plate “DIRTBAG,” was impounded to the Bellevue Police Department for a search warrant.

Police say they expected the suspect was charged Monday in King County Superior Court with first-degree assault with a firearm, assault on a police officer, malicious harassment, obstructing police, and resisting arrest.