In the early morning hours of February 19, 1983, a horrific scene was discovered within the Wah Mee Club, a gambling establishment in Seattle's Chinatown-International District. Dewey Mar, a 68-year-old male of Chinese descent and a projectionist at the Kokusai Theater, was found among the deceased. The motive for the crime that claimed his life and the lives of twelve others was a robbery that spiraled into a mass murder, leaving a lasting scar on the city and becoming the deadliest mass
killing in Washington state's history.
The night of the massacre, three young men, Kwan Fai "Willie" Mak, Keung Kin "Benjamin" Ng, and Wai Chiu "Tony" Ng, entered the exclusive club. After gaining entry, they proceeded to bind and rob the fourteen people inside. What began as a heist escalated into a cold-blooded execution as the victims, including Dewey Mar, were shot in the head. When police finally forced their way into the club, they were met with a gruesome sight: bodies were strewn across the gaming tables and the floor was thick with blood.
The investigation moved swiftly due to a sole survivor, Wai Yok Chin, who, despite being shot and tied up, managed to identify two of the assailants. This crucial testimony led to the quick apprehension of Willie Mak and Benjamin Ng within hours of the massacre. The third suspect, Tony Ng, fled to Canada but was eventually captured after a nearly two-year manhunt.
The subsequent trials brought the perpetrators to justice. Willie Mak and Benjamin Ng were convicted on thirteen counts of aggravated first-degree murder. Mak was initially sentenced to death, though this was later converted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Benjamin Ng also received a sentence of life imprisonment. Tony Ng, who played a lesser role in the killings, was convicted of robbery and assault, ultimately being paroled after serving nearly three decades and was then deported.
