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Newly released video has captured the horrifying moment a man wielding a wooden stick with a metal screw attached to one end allegedly brutally attacked an elderly woman at random early December.
Authorities said the suspect, who has a “violent person” caution and an extensive criminal history including random assaults, allegedly swung the weapon “like a baseball bat” and struck the unsuspecting 75-year-old woman in the face. The victim, Jeanette Marken, was left with “a laceration that was bleeding heavily” and is expected to permanently lose vision in one eye.
The brazen incident occurred just outside the King County Courthouse in downtown Seattle on Dec. 5.
Suspect Fale Vaigalepa Pea, 42, was arrested shortly after the incident when a King County Sheriff’s Office deputy posted near the courthouse rushed to the scene. Pea has been charged with first-degree assault and is being held on $1 million bail.
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In the video, the suspect appeared to deliberately strike Marken in the face from behind as she stood at a crosswalk intersection. He then walked away from the scene as several bystanders rushed to assist her, called 911 and pursued the suspect.
“The video captured by the Real Time Crime Center shows the suspect assaulting the victim from behind with an improvised weapon,” Detective Eric Muñoz told Fox News Digital in a statement Monday. “She had no opportunity to protect or defend herself. SPD is grateful for the community members that came to her immediate aid and called 911.”
The son of the victim said in a GoFundMe page that his mother was simply delivering food when the weapon gouged out her eye, prompting her to fall on the floor covered in blood.
“She was simply waiting to cross the street when a man came from behind and struck her in the face with a wooden club with nails,” the son said. “The blow was so violent that she fell into the ground instantly. “
“Her vision in her right eye was gone, and she was losing too much blood. At the hospital, we learned she had multiple fractures in her face, skull and nose… and that the damage to her right eye was permanent. She will never see from that eye again.”
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According to body camera footage, officers said they immediately recognized the repeat offender and described him as “notorious for random assaults” along Third Avenue. Local outlet KOMO News reported that Pea has been in and out of jail eight times this year alone.
“He’s a regular,” one officer was heard saying. “He usually punches. I guess today he decided to escalate from his usual.”
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In 2012, Pea was convicted in a 2011 party stabbing incident that left two people injured, including one victim who was stabbed eight times, KOMO News said. He reportedly received an 18-month sentence of community custody, and prosecutors said he was convicted of assault in the second degree.
According to court documents, Pea continued to rack up assault charges, including one misdemeanor conviction in 2020, four misdemeanor convictions in 2023 and another misdemeanor conviction for assault in 2024, prosecutors said.
In 2025, he was booked eight times for a wide range of incidents including assault, indecent exposure, drugs, property destruction, unlawful use of weapons and malicious mischief, KOMO News reported. However, none of his arrests resulted in charges, the outlet added, citing Seattle Municipal Court and King County Superior Court records.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney, which handles felony charges, told Fox News Digital that it has charged every violent felony case involving Pea that police referred to its office, including the 2011 felony assault case and the most recent case.
In the current case, prosecutors said they rush-filed a first-degree assault charge with a deadly weapon enhancement, meaning that he would face a longer sentencing range if convicted. They also sought $1 million bail, and requested electronic home monitoring if bail was posted.
Prosecutors said no other felony cases with sufficient evidence were referred to them between 2011 and the present.
The office noted that Pea’s other assault convictions — in 2024, 2023 and 2020 — were misdemeanor cases handled by the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, not King County prosecutors.
Seattle City Attorney’s Office and Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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