Man’s 1999 beating death remains a mystery
Published 11:11 pm Saturday, August 30, 2008
EVERETT — Frank Rattie wanted to buy his daughter a Cinderella dress for her fifth birthday.
He never got the dress, never saw his daughter twirl around in the gift from her daddy.
Rattie, 35, was beaten to death the day he was going to shop for the dress.
A truck driver spotted his battered body Aug. 12, 1999, under the Highway 529 bridge on the north side of the Snohomish River. Rattie died of brutal blows to his head.
The homicide remains unsolved. Rattie is featured on the three of diamonds in the state’s first deck of cold-case playing cards. Snohomish County sheriff’s detectives created the deck after learning police in Florida used similar cards to help solve a handful of homicides.
The Snohomish County decks include unsolved homicides and missing persons cases dating back to the 1970s. They have been provided to jail and prison inmates around the state. Detectives hope inmates will step forward with tips to help them find answers for grieving families.
The majority of the cards feature cases being investigated by Snohomish County sheriff’s detectives. A handful, including Rattie’s death, are being handled by Everett police detectives.
Rattie, a native of Aberdeen, had moved to Everett from Nevada just a few weeks before he was killed.
He wanted to be closer to his little girl, his family said.
Rattie had been working as a night waiter at Anthony’s Home Port restaurant on the Everett waterfront. His gray Honda Accord with a Nevada license plate was found in a parking lot near the restaurant. Police believe the car wasn’t parked where it would have been if Rattie had reported to work.
Everett police detective James Brouwer searched for the killer but the investigation stalled. Detectives didn’t pick up any rumors or rumblings on the streets about the slaying.
“There was never word one,” he said.
Rattie’s death has stuck with Brouwer over the past eight years. The homicide was the first he investigated with the department.
“This guy didn’t deserve what he got,” Brouwer said. “He was working and wanted to be close to his daughter.”
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
