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Veteran firefighter faces child sex charges

BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Michael Sulak, a 15-year veteran of the Seattle Fire Department, did not show any emotion during his arraignment on three counts of child rape and one count of harboring a child on Friday.

The 52-year-old married father of four gave short answers to the Whatcom County judge as he pleaded not guilty to all charges.

After about three minutes in court, he left through a side door that leads directly to a quick exit from the building.

Neither Sulak’s defense attorney nor the Whatcom County prosecutor handling the case would talk after court.

Sulak, or “Suey,” as he is known around Fire Station 8 in Queen Anne, likes to cook and act.  According to court documents, he met his 15-year-old victim through a theater group in Whatcom County.  The documents lay out how Sulak had sex twice with the teen during a play at Meridian High School in Bellingham.

The teenager also told investigators they had sex in his truck parked near the fire station when she ran away from home in December.  The Seattle Fire Department said Sulak, who made $102,000 last year, has been on disability since Feb. 8 and is currently on administrative leave.

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