UPDATE: Man charged in West Seattle stabbing death of Hokum W. Jeebs
Tue, 02/22/2011
From King County Prosecutors:
Charge filed in West Seattle homicide--Angelo Felice, 19, was charged this afternoon with Murder First Degree (11-1-01717-2) for the stabbing death of Robert Stabile on February 16 in West Seattle. Bail is set at $1 million. Arraignment is scheduled for March 8 at 8:30 a.m. at the King County Courthouse, courtroom 1201.
Herald coverage of charging documents released on Feb. 22 follows.
Angelo Felice, 19, has been charged with First Degree Murder in the alleged stabbing death of West Seattle resident and lifelong vaudeville entertainer Hokum W. Jeebs (aka Robert Stabile) in the early morning hours of Feb. 16.
According to charging documents, prosecutors believe Felice intended to rob Jeebs, but murder was the result.
Washington State Police crime lab scientists ran DNA tests on blood samples taken from Felice’s shirt and the murder weapon (a kitchen knife). Blood taken from the knife and back of Felice’s shirt match Jeebs’ DNA, according to documents.
Along with the DNA evidence, the certification of probable cause released on Feb. 22 reveals several more details on the night of Feb. 16 leading to charges against Felice.
According to charging documents, autopsy results show Jeebs suffered three knife wounds: one cut to the hand (which may have been a defensive injury), one to his back that was non-life threatening and a third to his left side that damaged the carotid artery near Jeebs’ heart. Medical examiners said the third stab wound was fatal.
Felice admitted to police that he was at Jeebs’ house the night of the murder, but said he left because of unwelcome sexual advances from Jeebs and did not hurt him, according to documents.
As for how the two ended up at Jeebs’ residence on the early morning of Feb. 16, detectives used cell phone evidence along with suspect and witness testimony to piece together a backstory.
Felice told detectives he recently came to Seattle from New York (where he has prior convictions for burglary in 2008 and second degree assault in 2009). He said he had been staying with his sister.
Felice told police he met Jeebs on Feb. 14 and Jeebs had bought him drinks and cigarettes.
Text message correspondence released between Jeebs and a witness who knew both men were analyzed by police in reference to that meeting and transcribed in charging documents.
“Hey do you need any work done today angelo (Felice) said he needs to make some money,” the witnesses text read.
“Is that wink wink work?” Jeebs responded.
“He’s down for that kind of work but he wants to get to know you first,” the witness texted.
The communication continued and a meeting was set up for Jeebs to pick Felice up on Feb. 15 so they could go hang out at Jeebs’ house, Felice told police.
According to charging documents, a separate witness contacted police after hearing of Jeebs’ murder. He told police he had known Felice for a few weeks and that he was with him when Jeebs (whom he identified through a photo) drove up. He said Felice walked to Jeebs’ vehicle and they talked about Felice coming over to do yard work.
After Jeebs left, the witness said Felice, “began to talk about how they should go over to ‘Hokum’s’ place under the pretense they they were going to work in the garden then tie him up and rob him for his ‘weed’ and anything else,” according to charging documents.
Court documents revealed Jeebs had a medical marijuana grow operation in his house and his roommate told police Jeebs was a medical marijuana patient for a number of health reasons.
The witness said he left and told Felice, “he doesn’t do things like that.”
Another witness linked to the case through text messages told police he had known Jeebs for a year and a half (Jeebs was allegedly his source for marijuana) and he had only known Felice for a week. The witness told police Felice said he planned to pull off a few home invasion robberies in order to make some money to get back to New York. He also stated, according to charging documents, that he went to Jeebs’ house on the evening of Feb. 14 (after Jeebs and Felice’s first meeting) and warned him, “not to trust Felice because he thought Felice was ‘shady.’”
The events of the night of the Jeebs’ murder come from Felice’s interview with police and included in charging documents.
Felice said on Feb. 15 he smoked “weed” and remembered meeting Jeebs who he called a “faggot” and described as, “an old dude with glasses.”
According to court documents, he said Jeebs picked him up at the 7-11 on 16th Ave s.w. around 10 p.m. and they went back to Jeebs’ house. He said Jeebs told him “if he wanted to get high he just had to let him know and he could come to his residence.”
Once as the house, Felice said Jeebs had been “hitting” on him as the men smoked marijuana and used methamphetamine. Felice said Jeebs, “tried to unbutton his pants at one point ‘in the backroom.’”
According to charging documents, Felice said he left Jeebs’ house shortly after midnight because Jeebs, “was coming onto him and he grabbed his smokes and just left.”
Jeebs’ roommate called 911 at 12:14 a.m. on Feb. 16. She had gone to bed upstairs (which she said was her normal routine when Jeebs had “other men over”) and woke up shortly after midnight to the sound of Jeebs yelling out in pain. She heard running on the back deck and got up to investigate when something “smashed against her bedroom window on the west side of her room.” She called 911 to report an assault and Jeebs came into her room yelling that he had been stabbed. She used towels to put pressure on his injuries, but by the time paramedics arrived Jeebs was already unconscious and pronounced dead at the scene, according to charging documents.
According to charging documents at least four witnesses called police after seeing a man “covered in mud from head to toe,” emerging from a ravine. Police responded to those tips and stopped Felice near 16th Ave s.w. and s.w. Holden St.
At that time Felice told police he was looking for his sister’s dog and he was transported to the homicide office for further questioning, according to court documents.
Felice's bail has been set at $1 million and he is scheduled to appear in court on March 8.
For more background on the life of Hokum W. Jeebs, check out the Herald article, West Seattle murder victim spent life as a traveling vaudeville performer.