The King County Prosecutor’s Office today announced the filing of murder charges against Ignacio Rosas, who is accused of attacking a woman who was walking on a footpath near Bellevue Community College in Bellevue last Monday morning.

Rosas, 29, is charged with one count of murder in the first degree, a charge that is filed as a felony murder with the predicate felony being attempted rape in the second degree. The investigation is still ongoing, and police and prosecutors await the results of forensic testing from the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab.

On May 23, a witness was walking on the footpath near Bellevue Community College and saw Rosas, who was not wearing a shirt and was acting suspiciously. The witness felt something was wrong and called police. Bellevue Police arrived and the defendant was arrested.

Prosecutors allege that Rosas attempted to rape the victim, Cassandra Oliphant. Court documents also indicate that she was strangled. Oliphant, 33, was early in the first trimester of a pregnancy and also leaves behind four young children.

“This was a predatory attack on a woman who was the mother of four young children,” said King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng. “This crime has shaken our community and we grieve for this young woman’s family,” he added.

If Rosas is convicted as charged he could be sentenced to 20 to 26 years in prison. He is being held in the King County Jail on $2 million bail pending arraignment on June 6 in King County Superior Court at the King County Courthouse, 8:30 a.m. in courtroom 1201.


Dated: May 26, 2005