Man who stalked woman in Thurston County and threatened to kill her held without bail

Martín Bilbao / The Olympian (TNS)

A 29-year-old man accused of stalking a woman in her Lacey-area home and threatening to kill her is being held without bail in the county jail.

Wilson Yuheng Hong attended his preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on Tuesday.

Thurston County officials arrested Hong on Monday after finding him at a woman's home near McAllister Grove Community Park. The woman reportedly called 911 after Hong allegedly broke into her home. According to court documents, officials allege Hong followed her across state lines and stalked her before the incident.

Judge Allyson Zipp ordered Hong held without bail and barred him from having contact with the woman he allegedly threatened. Hong is expected to remain in the county jail until further notice while his case is pursued.

Zipp also found probable cause for several crimes, including attempted first-degree murder, attempted first-degree kidnapping, first-degree burglary, stalking, harassment, second-degree malicious damage to property, and possession of burglary tools.

Court records show that Hong has no known criminal convictions or other open cases.

The investigation

A probable cause statement describes the investigation from the law enforcement perspective.

Officers arrived at the woman's home at 2:38 a.m. Monday after she called 911 to report that someone had broken into her home.

When officers arrived, the house appeared to be dark and no noise could be heard, the statement said.

Officers noticed a silver Kia Soul with a Nevada license plate parked in the driveway. The statement states that the driver's door and tailgate were open and an empty Glock pistol case was inside.

Hong and the woman showed up at the front door at about 2:56 a.m. after officers rang the doorbell and knocked on the garage door. The woman reportedly appeared frightened and visibly shaken while Hong stood next to her, breathing heavily.

Officers eventually separated the two and began speaking to them individually. The woman reported that Hong broke into her home with a Glock gun.

She told the deputy that she had moved to Thurston County in late July for a new job. Before that, she had dated Hong about five times while she was living in New Mexico.

She said she told Hong she was moving to Seattle but did not specify where she planned to live, the probable cause statement said. She said Hong wanted to meet her in Seattle, but she denied his request and prevented him from contacting her.

At the end of August, the woman said she received back a clay pot that she had previously given to Hong in New Mexico. The pot was found in front of her garage and contained a note.

The message allegedly said Hong was angry with her, that he had “done something bad” and “almost hurt someone,” the statement said.

On Monday, the woman told officers she woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom when she heard a loud bang and then a knock on her bedroom door.

She reportedly grabbed her phone and hid in her bathroom. Hong allegedly broke down her bedroom door and eventually left the bathroom to calm him down.

The statement shows that Hong was carrying a gun and told her, “I want to kill you.”

The woman reportedly persuaded Hong to drop the gun and talk to police officers waiting outside. She told the officer she did not know how Hong got to her house and she was afraid to be alone.

Another officer spoke to Hong after taking a pocket knife from him. Hong allegedly told the officer he had come to talk to his ex-girlfriend because she was not returning his calls.

Hong then allegedly admitted to entering the home by breaking open the rear sliding glass door, the statement said. Hong allegedly told the officer he was carrying the gun to scare the woman and he planned to use it on himself.

Officers obtained a search warrant and searched Hong's rental car. The statement says they found a backpack containing personal documents and notes, including drafts of the note left at the pottery shop and a statement that his brother was his beneficiary.

On the way to the county jail, Hong allegedly said, “He shouldn't have done that” and “she's going to be traumatized,” according to the statement.

An officer inquired about the car rental company Hong had used about their car rental history and reportedly learned that Hong had rented at least three other cars in addition to the Kia found at the woman's home.

The officer then contacted Olympia police, who confirmed that the rental cars were in the area of ​​Martin Way and Lilly Road at the time Hong rented them, the same area where the woman went to work, the statement said.

Back at the woman's home, officers reportedly found a broken sliding glass door, a small glass-breaking tool on the floor, a chainsaw and a yellow crowbar.

In the rental car, officers found cable ties, electrical tape, two straightened metal coat hangers, lock picks, a headlamp, two lockjaw pliers, a hammer, various screwdrivers, work gloves, N95 masks and a receipt for the chainsaw, according to the statement.

According to court records, Hong is due back in court on September 24 for his arraignment.

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