Two guilty in kidnap, murder

Published 10:31 pm Wednesday, December 10, 2008

EVERETT — Forrest Starrett was 48 when he was gunned down at dawn in his pickup truck outside an Everett drug house.

He was roughly twice the age of the men convicted of taking his life.

Steven Lee, 26, and Tsegazeab “Keylo” Zerahaimanot, 24, face decades behind bars for Starrett’s murder. They likely will be older than the slain man before they are freed from the confines of a prison cell.

A Snohomish County jury on Wednesday convicted Lee and Zerahaimanot of two counts of first-degree murder with a firearm. The jury believed the men kidnapped Starrett at gunpoint and shot him to death Aug. 21, 2007. They also found that the murder was premeditated.

Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Michael Downes also ruled the men, both felons, were guilty of unlawful possession of firearms.

Lee and Zerahaimanot bowed their heads and showed little reaction as the verdicts were read.

The silence before the jury’s decisions were announced was broken by the sobs of the defendants’ families and friends. They gasped and shook their heads in disbelief.

Attorneys made closing arguments Monday, wrapping up the three-week trial. Jurors deliberated until early Wednesday afternoon. They asked two questions of the judge before announcing their decisions.

The defendants were accused of shooting Starrett in the head and leg after they became concerned he was an undercover police officer investigating their involvement in cocaine trafficking. While many of the witnesses were convicted criminals who were uncooperative with investigators, there was enough evidence to corroborate their versions of the events, prosecutors told jurors.

“It was a challenging case to get into a courtroom before a jury,” Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Lisa Paul said.

The defendants’ attorneys attacked the police investigation, telling jurors that police made numerous mistakes and arrested the wrong men. They also warned that the witnesses shouldn’t be trusted because they were liars and thieves and at least one may be responsible for the killing.

After the verdict Zerahaimanot’s attorney, Robert Perez, said that he was amazed jurors reached the conclusion they did considering all of the questions he raised about the prosecution’s case. He said he plans to file an appeal next week.

The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday.

“We’ll never give up seeking justice for Mr. Zerahaimanot,” Perez said.

Lee’s attorney, John Crowley, said he also plans an appeal.

“It was a hardworking jury … and I respect their decision, but naturally I feel that an acquittal would have been more appropriate,” he said.

Starrett’s wife, Victoria, wiped tears from her cheeks as she sat in the courtroom after the jury was dismissed.

Later she offered her gratitude to Everett police investigators, Snohomish County deputy prosecutors and the victim advocate who sat by her side.

“I also want to thank the judge and jury. Being in their position must have been really hard,” she said.

Victoria Starrett testified during the trial that her husband had been a good father and grandfather before he became addicted to drugs, less than a year before his death.

Her husband had been a dedicated and well-liked Boeing employee who considered his co-workers a second family, she said. He had lifelong friends and is greatly missed.

“Forrest ended up in a lifestyle that was a great shock to everyone who knew him,” she said.

Victoria Starrett said she was relieved by Wednesday’s verdict but she felt sad for the defendants’ families.

“Everybody’s lost in this situation,” she said. “It’s all because of drugs that everyone is suffering.”

Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.