Accused Seattle home invasion robbers face hate crime charges

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (KCPAO) has filed hate crime charges against two men allegedly involved in at least three home invasion robberies.

Police said these suspects apparently targeted people of Asian descent.

Javez Paul Tubbs, 30, and Demarcus Maurice Pate, 28, are also charged with felony assault and burglary. They have been in jail since September. Initially, they were in jail due to weapons charges.

Tubbs and Pate were among seven adults and one juvenile taken into custody in late September during a police operation investigating as many as 14 home invasion robberies in the greater Seattle area. The suspects would force their way into homes and rob families.

The charging documents state the following:

On June 25, 2023, a group of subjects, including the defendants, committed three home invasions in less than two hours. The home invaders – who targeted Asian households – forced their way into the residences while identifying themselves as ‘Seattle Police.’ … The June 25 home invasions occurred in the context of a pattern of home invasions across the Puget Sound that targeted Asian households, causing significant trauma and fear for Asian community members.

Investigators used cell phone data to connect suspects to the locations of several home invasion robberies.

Background story: Police make arrests in connection with South Seattle home invasions

Casey McNerthney, a spokesperson for the KCPAO, emphasized the need for a sound case while gathering evidence against the suspects.

“In the months that people haven’t been hearing about these cases, Seattle police have been doing months of work behind the scenes to get prosecutors the evidence that we needed to file those hate crime charges and the assault and burglary charges,” he said.

A hate crime in the state of Washington is a class C felony, which generally carries a sentence of under two years.

Home invasion suspects remain in jail

“We asked the court for $1.5 million bail for each back when we filed charges back in September,” McNerthney said. “The court agreed with that, so they have been held in a King County jail since their arrest.”

Furthermore, it’s possible that these may not be the only individuals involved in the home invasions.

Charges against additional suspects are possible.

“This is something that Seattle police are still looking at,” McNerthney explained. “So if we get additional folks who are referred to us, I’m sure that we’ll act on it right away.”

The investigation remains ongoing.

Heather Bosch is an award-winning anchor and reporter on KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of her stories here. Follow Heather on X, formerly known as Twitter, or email her here.

Contributing: Bill Kaczaraba, MyNorthwest

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