LAKE STEVENS — Legal troubles are piling up for a Bonney Lake woman who is a suspect in a violent home-invasion robbery in Lake Stevens.
Prosecutors earlier this month charged Crystal Atter with burglary for 2014 heist in Edmonds. Genetic testing allegedly confirmed that a hair band found in the house contained Atter’s DNA. She also allegedly pawned a laptop computer taken from the house, according to court papers.
Lake Stevens detectives say Atter stole a laptop and jewelry from a Lake Stevens couple last month after she and two other people forced their way inside the home.
Prosecutors on Thursday charged Atter with first-degree robbery in connection with the Dec. 31 incident.
Atter, 27, was convicted last year of attempting to steal a vehicle. She also has several misdemeanor convictions for drug crimes. In asking for $50,000 bail prosecutors say Atter has failed to show up for 22 court hearings.
The Lake Stevens couple, both in their 70s, told police that three people forced their way into their home after ringing the doorbell. The suspects were wearing masks and gloves. One suspect allegedly held the woman down while Atter went to the bedroom.
The homeowner, who has a medical condition, was in bed. He told police he tried to grab the woman’s jacket but he was struck on the head multiple times, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Toni Montgomery said.
The trio fled but a witness saw a white car leaving the area. The car was a swerving all over the road and the license plate was covered up. The witness took video footage of the car and turned it over to police. A Lake Stevens detective noticed a distinctive dent on the Cadillac and sent a bulletin to other police departments. A Snohomish County sheriff’s detective spotted the car at a gas station Jan. 5.
Atter allegedly was driving. She reportedly confessed to detectives that she and two others committed the robbery. She told police that she’d gone there to collect a debt. She denied that anyone was assaulted.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley.
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