JBLM soldier is now a suspect in Tumwater cabbie’s homicide but charges have yet to be filed
The Army specialist arrested in January on desertion charges is now a suspect in the January 15 death of Tumwater cab driver Nick Hokema, the Tukwila Police Department said Friday. The News Tribune previously reported that Jonathan Kang Lee had been wanted for questioning in Hokema’s homicide.
Hokema was found dead in a Southcenter Mall parking lot the day after Lee left Joint Base Lewis McChord just as his trial on child sex crime charges was set to begin.
Lee was tried in absentia and found guilty. He was sentenced to 64 years in prison.
On Jan. 26, the Army’s Criminal Investigative Division and officers from Tukwila Police Department’s major crimes unit arrested Lee in Redmond on desertion charges.
“At the time of Lee’s arrest by the Army’s CID, he was considered a person of interest in the murder of Hokema,” Tukwila police said in a statement Friday. “Lee is now a suspect in the homicide however, no charges have been filed at this time.”
According to Tukwila police, the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel is reviewing the case. It has yet to be announced if Lee will be tried by the Army, King County Prosecutors or both if and when charges are filed.
Michelle McCaskill, a spokesperson for the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, said Lee is in custody, serving time for the sexual offense charges he was convicted of in January.
“Army law enforcement is working closely with the Tukwila Police Department regarding the murder of Mr. Hokema as Lee is a suspect in the case,” McCaskill said in a state to The News Tribune. “As a matter of policy, the Army has no further comment as the investigation is ongoing.”
This story was originally published March 1, 2024 at 4:32 PM.
