A University of Washington student was found fatally stabbed late Saturday at Nordheim Court, an off-campus housing complex for undergraduates in Seattle, after police responded to a report of a stabbing about 10:10 p.m. local time on May 10.
Responding officers found the victim in a laundry room at the privately managed building, and both university police and the Seattle Fire Department tried lifesaving treatment before the student was pronounced dead at the scene. The Seattle Police Department later took over the investigation after campus police cordoned off the area.
The university sent an emergency alert at about 10:40 p.m. telling residents to stay indoors and lock doors and windows. By around 11:05 p.m., officials said the area had been secured but urged residents to remain inside. Shortly before 1 a.m. on May 11, the university said residents no longer needed to stay indoors.
Seattle police told the victim was 19 years old, and the King County Medical Examiner was expected to identify the student in the coming days. Police said the circumstances leading up to the killing remain under investigation, while officers were actively searching for a suspect described as a Black male with a beard, about 5 feet, 6 inches to 5 feet, 7 inches tall, wearing a vest over a button-up shirt and blue jeans.
University President Robert Jones said the school was reaching out to students affected by the killing and offering support and resources. In a message to the campus community, he offered his deepest sympathies and condolences to the family and loved ones of the student and said there are no words that can express the profound loss of a student. He also said that while investigators had not yet identified a suspect or a motive, the violence could be especially worrying for LGBTQIA+ community members when a trans person is affected.
Nordheim Court is privately managed by Greystar and serves undergraduate students living off campus. The fatal stabbing has left the university community waiting for the medical examiner’s identification and for investigators to determine whether the killing was targeted, random or tied to something else. For now, the facts are stark: a 19-year-old student is dead, and police are still searching for the person who killed them.
