Bellevue woman speaks out after suspects followed her home, robbed her at gunpoint

A Bellevue woman and her son were held at gunpoint inside their home on Tuesday. Police said several suspects followed the woman home and dashed away with her jewelry.

A spokesperson for the Bellevue Police Department, Officer Seth Tyler, said the armed home invasion happened around 3:30 a.m. on Southeast 40th Place.

Tyler said they got a call about 15 minutes after the incident had happened.

Tyler said the woman was driving home from work at Roman Casino, on Renton Avenue South, when five suspects followed her home at some point. It’s not clear if the suspects began following her at the casino.

KIRO 7 reached out to Roman Casino, however, management declined to talk or show security footage.

Anh-Nguyet Nguyen, the woman, said she does not speak English, however, KIRO 7′s Louie Tran translated for her. She told KIRO 7 that she took the city roads home after she felt tired.

When she parked her car in the parking lot outside of her apartment building, surveillance video captured the moment suspects charged toward her as she walked up a flight of stairs.

Nguyen said the suspects grabbed her two bags filled with food and tossed them. They then grabbed her jacket and asked her where she lived. Then, they pointed a gun at her forehead.

She said they yanked her necklace, but Nguyen was able to hide her bracelets by covering them with her jacket’s sleeve.

Nguyen said she could not keep up with the suspect’s pace, as she was frightened, so they grabbed her jacket and shoved her up the stairs.

She said three suspects went inside her home, while one stayed outside. The suspects held her son at gunpoint inside their home and forced him to lie on the ground.

Nguyen said she was scared the suspects would shoot and kill her son.

She said they also forced her to lie on the ground where they stole her ring. She hid her bracelets underneath her jacket, once again.

Nguyen said they also stole around $300 from her.

Nguyen said she doesn’t know the suspects but this is the fourth time she has been followed home.

During the first incident, Nguyen said she sped more than 80 miles per hour and switched lanes several times to get away.

During the second incident, she drove to a police station.

However Tuesday morning, she didn’t see the suspects until she got home.

Nguyen showed KIRO 7 a bruise on her wrist that she got during the armed invasion.

Bellevue police said they are searching for five men, who were wearing masks and dark clothing and believed to be in their late teens and early twenties.

Nguyen said she did not see the fifth suspect, but believes he was inside a car.

Tyler said his team has some leads and video footage of the suspect but did not share further details.

He said Tuesday’s invasion was part of a bigger trend across the region.

“This is not the first time this type of crime has happened in the region,” he said. “There had been other incidents where victims, Asian Americans, had been followed and subsequently robbed. In Bellevue, this is the first home invasion robbery in quite a while.”

He stressed that people should be cautious, no matter where they’re located.

“An important thing to emphasize here is vigilance,” he said. “If you’re driving around in the middle of the night, there’s not a lot of cars out at three in the morning. So if you notice a car that appears to be following you, if you don’t’ feel safe, you can always call 911 or you can drive to the police station. Call police from there, if you feel you’re in danger.”

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