West Seattle Crime Watch: How a detective looking for video snared a suspect instead

While checking the jail register for an unrelated case, we discovered a suspect had been arrested and charged in two armed robberies last Saturday, one of which happened in West Seattle. 21-year-old Seth C. Tapaka is in the King County Jail in lieu of half a million dollars bail, charged with two counts of first-degree robbery and one count of unlawful gun possession, since he’s a convicted felon who wasn’t supposed to have a gun at all, because of a 2015 robbery conviction for which he cleared probation just a month ago.

He is accused of holding up the South Delridge 7-11 around 5:20 am Saturday, an hour after holding up a Circle K store in South Seattle. At both stores, court documents say, he got away with cigarettes as well as hundreds of dollars in cash. Police reviewing security video from buildings near the 7-11 found that Tapaka’s girlfriend was waiting in his car nearby. Detective Michael Magan noted distinctive features of the green 1997 Honda Accord – particularly a wheel rim that was different from the rest. When the detective returned to the South Delridge area this past Tuesday in hopes of finding more video, he instead spotted that same green Accord, with Tapaka and his girlfriend inside. Det. Magan called for patrol units to stop the car, which they did, at 15th and Roxbury. Subsequent questioning led police to find the handgun used in the holdups, a 9mm semiautomatic Ruger that belonged to a former girlfriend of Tapaka’s, who lives with their child at Tapaka’s mother’s house on Beacon Hill. The report says the former girlfriend also noted, when shown video from the South Seattle holdup, that the gray backpack that Tapaka used was their baby’s diaper bag.

11 Replies to "West Seattle Crime Watch: How a detective looking for video snared a suspect instead"

  • Mary November 30, 2018 (1:41 pm)

    Wow! Is all I can say.

  • RJB November 30, 2018 (1:44 pm)

    And the father of the year award goes to…..

  • NW November 30, 2018 (2:16 pm)

    Well done Det. Magan and our SW Seattle Police Department.

  • WW Resident November 30, 2018 (2:28 pm)

    QUOTE: He is accused of holding up the South Delridge 7-11 around 5:20 am Saturday, an hour after holding up a Circle K store in South Seattle. At both stores, court documents say, he got away with cigarettes as well as hundreds of dollars in cashWhat a winner and he was able to do that before turning 21

    • WSB November 30, 2018 (2:42 pm)

      He is 21 (per the DOB in court docs) and is identified as such in the story. Couple months short of 22.

      • WW Resident November 30, 2018 (5:02 pm)

        Well that changes everything, lol

  • TJ November 30, 2018 (4:51 pm)

    So let’s see. The gun is his ex girlfriends, who somehow still lives with his mom and their kid. And his getaway driver is his current girlfriend, who between the 2 are dumb enough to use a distinctive car that stands out and which they were back in the same area a couple says later. Story doesn’t say if his current girlfriend/getaway driver was arrested, but I would certainly assume so. And the ex needs to be investigated to see if she either gave him the gun or didn’t report it if he took it. This story has dysfunction all over it. I hope the best for the child, but with a mom and dad like this, there are a couple strikes already. 

  • ltfd November 30, 2018 (4:58 pm)

    I guess he’s too old for a “peace circle” and a hug.

    • WSB November 30, 2018 (8:40 pm)

      That would be the prior, which I didn’t have time to research. When things calm down later I’ll look up how the case ended.

  • 1994 November 30, 2018 (8:58 pm)

    “When the detective returned to the South Delridge area this past Tuesday in hopes of finding more video, he instead spotted that same green Accord, with Tapaka and his girlfriend inside.” as read above. Woohoo! for the observant detective – who was in the right place at the right time to spot the 2 criminals! 

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