On July 20th, Seattle police officers contacted the driver of a red Toyota van in the 1500 block of Occidental Avenue South after an automated license plate reader flagged the vehicle as having been reported stolen outside of Seattle.
The 61-year-old driver was uncooperative with investigating officers, who eventually detained the man and explained his vehicle had been reported stolen to the Washington Criminal Information Center (WACIC), and offered to show him the van’s stolen vehicle entry in the WACIC database.
During his encounter with police, the man claimed the officers on-scene were part of a conspiracy against him and voiced concerns that his detainment was racially biased. He was interviewed and released pending further investigation. The man has since held a press conference to expand on his claims. The police contact, recorded by a patrol car’s dashcam, can be viewed below.
The Seattle Police Department is firmly committed to constitutional policing and is reviewing the man’s allegations in keeping with SPD’s bias-free policing policies, developed in partnership with the Department of Justice and the Federal Monitoring Team.