Man gets 25 years for Kent home invasions and elsewhere

Published 1:30 pm Wednesday, July 1, 2026

A member of an armed robbery crew that carried out a series of home invasion robberies in 2022, including four in Kent, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 25 years in prison for racketeering and conspiracy to commit RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act).

In addition to the home invasions, Christopher Joseph Johnson, 24, also aided and abetted the murder of Irah Marcello Sok who was fatally shot in midst of a Snohomish County home invasion robbery in August 2022.

“You used violence, fear, and intimidation. …The victims face unthinkable trauma due to you and your coconspirators insatiable greed,” said U.S. District Judge Lauren King at the June 30 sentencing hearing, according to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) news release.

The robberies stretched between South King County and Skagit County.

In one of the Kent cases, on Aug. 12, 2022, two Kent residents were locked in a closet when their home was ransacked.

Officers responded at about 6:59 a.m. regarding a robbery, according to a Kent Police blotter item. The two were asleep in their home and woke up to their normal alarm. When they went downstairs, they saw flashlights and were overtaken by three suspects.

The suspects zip tied their hands, demanded cash and jewelry, and put them in a closet while they ransacked their home. The victims remained in the closet until they could no longer hear the suspects. When they left the closet, they cut off the zip ties and ran to the neighbor’s house to call the police. The suspects took the keys to the victim’s vehicle, some jewelry and electronics.

”This crime ring terrorized people up and down the I-5 corridor – women, children, families – anyone they thought had valuables they could steal,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd. “This lengthy sentence keeps this defendant off the streets until he is well into his 40s, protecting the public and hopefully making a change in his behavior.”

Johnson pleaded guilty in February, admitting he was involved in a pattern of violent crimes allegedly committed by codefendant Kevin Thissel, 29, and their co-conspirators. In the summer of 2022, Johnson and his coconspirators targeted certain families for robberies.

To create a climate of fear, the robbery crew burst into homes in the middle of the night, dressed in black with guns drawn, often claiming to be police, according to the DOJ. They wore masks and used zip-ties to restrain the victims – including children as young as 9. They would steal any valuables they could ransack from these homes.

Each member of the robbery crew had a certain job: identifying potential victims based on social media posts about their wealth or collections; surveilling the target homes; serving as a driver; kicking in the door; corralling the family; holding the victims at gunpoint; and ransacking the homes for valuables. Some of those participating in this violent robbery scheme were juveniles.

The crimes Johnson committed include:

• May 24, 2022, the armed robbery of a family in Mount Vernon, and the kidnapping of a young boy in connection with the Mount Vernon robbery.

• May 24, 2022, attempted burglary on Mercer Island – one robber fired a gun but did not hit one of three victims inside the house.

• May 27, 2022, burglary of an unoccupied Kent residence.

• June 19, 2022, the attempted burglary of an occupied residence in Kent. One of the residents fired at the robbery crew causing them to flee.

• July 14, 2022, the armed robbery of a couple in Burien.

• July 28, 2022, the armed robbery of a woman in Kent and her kidnapping to force her to obtain cash from ATMs.

• Aug. 12, 2022, the robbery of two Kent residents who were locked in a closet while their home was ransacked.

• Aug. 19, 2022, the Snohomish County armed robbery of a couple and their child and the murder of one of the Snohomish County robbery victims.

Some of the criminal acts described in the plea agreement were not formally charged. They were considered by Judge King to determine the sentence. Restitution for the victims will be set at a hearing on Sept. 22.

As anticipated with the plea agreement, Johnson pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Snohomish County Superior Court for the Aug. 19, 2022, fatal shooting of Irah Marcello Sok. He was sentenced to 25 years for that crime which will run concurrent with the federal sentence. Judge King agreed to Johnson’s request and recommended that he serve his sentence in the Washington state prison system.

Johnson will be on five years of supervised release following his prison term.

The case is being investigated by the FBI with significant assistance from the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, the Mount Vernon Police Department, the Kent Police Department and the King County Sheriff’s Office.