information from the City of SeaTac

A SeaTac resident, Alieu Gerew, was awarded the very first King County Sheriff’s Office Medal of Heroism this month, roughly eight months after intervening in a child abuse incident.

On August 30, a woman attempted to throw her child over the balcony with a noose around his neck at an apartment complex in the 21000 block of International Blvd, SeaTac. Gerew was sleeping in his fourth story apartment when he was awakened by yelling from the apartment below. He looked over his own balcony and saw a woman, who turned out to be the boy’s mother, trying to hang an 11-year-old boy. Gerew jumped from his own balcony to the balcony below and protected the child, removing the noose and staying with him until police arrived.

The mother was charged with attempted murder.

SeaTac Sergeant Koceski nominated Gerew for the award, writing:

“During the incident, (Mr. Gerew) faced extreme risk and acted without regard to his own well-being. He acted with full knowledge of the risk to his personal safety. Had (Mr. Gerew) NOT acted, it was very likely that substantial bodily harm or even death would have been the result to the child. His actions alone not only saved the young man from probable death, but also allowed for the removal of this child and his siblings from an abusive home giving them a fresh start in life.”