page_title: Wah Mee massacre
section_title: Sequence
hierarchical_section_title: Wah Mee massacre / Massacre / Sequence
caption_attribution_description: English: The entrance to the former Wah Mee Club, where the Wah Mee massacre occurred. Maynard Alley, International District, Seattle, Washington.
context_page_description: The Wah Mee massacre was a multiple homicide that occurred during the night of February 18–19, 1983, in which Kwan Fai "Willie" Mak, Wai-Chiu "Tony" Ng, and Benjamin Ng bound, robbed, and shot fourteen people in the Wah Mee gambling club at the Louisa Hotel in Chinatown-International District, Seattle. Thirteen of their victims died, but Wai Chin, a dealer at the Wah Mee, survived to testify against the three in the separate high-profile trials held in 1983 and 1985. It is the deadliest mass murder in Washington state history.
context_section_description: Chin arrived at approximately 11:50–11:55 PM the night of February 18 for his regular shift as a pai gow dealer, which started at midnight. Shortly after his shift began, Chin saw either Willie Mak or Benjamin Ng (the identity varies depending on the source), both of whom he recognized as club patrons, enter with a man he did not know (later identified as Tony Ng). Both Mak (or Ng) and Tony Ng then drew their guns, ordering everyone to lie down on the club's lower level. At the time, there were ten other patrons and staff present besides the three gunmen. Approximately ten minutes later, either Benjamin Ng or Willie Mak entered the club; Mak stood on the club's upper level with a drawn gun, supervising Benjamin and Tony Ng as they methodically hogtied each victim's hands and feet with rope, laying them on their stomachs before proceeding to rob the victims of their wallets and money.
  While the robbery was in progress, four more patrons arrived; they too were bound and robbed. Wai Chin convinced Tony Ng, who was tying his bonds, to loosen the rope, as there was "no need to tie so tight, I'm an old man". Once everyone was tied up, Wai Chin heard and was struck by gunfire in the neck and jaw, and lapsed into unconsciousness. Tony Ng testified at his trial that although he had a gun, he never used it and was forced to participate in the robbery under duress. According to Tony Ng, Mak instructed him to take the money and leave after all the victims had been bound; Ng fled across the alley to the Hop Sing Club to wait for Benjamin and Willie. Ng further testified that he heard gunshots after he had already exited the Wah Mee. When Chin came to, he was able to loosen his ropes and staggered outside at 12:44 AM, where he was able to find help from three patrons who had been buzzing to gain entry to the club. After the police arrived, they found twelve dead; one more victim subsequently died of his injuries at the hospital, and Wai Yok Chin was the sole survivor.
  According to the police, 32 shots were fired in total; 26 of those were fired from the same .22 caliber gun. Each victim had been shot in the head at least once.
caption: The entrance of the Wah Mee Club approximately 24 years after the massacre. (2007)
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