By Tim Clifford

A sentence of one year and one day was handed down to Darion Holiwell, the former King County Sheriff’s deputy who pleaded guilty to 3 felony charges.

Holiwell pleaded guilty to a second-degree promoting prostitution charge, first degree theft charge, and one count of violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. Holiwell was officially fired from the King County Sheriff’s Department 3 weeks ago.

Initially Holiwell entered a plea of “not guilty” but reversed his plea after making a deal with prosecutors during Monday’s hearing.

“It was a good resolution in the case, he pleaded guilty as charged. He is being held accountable for his actions and is going to serve a sentence of one year” said Dan Donahue, the media relations manager for the King County Prosecutor’s office.

Holiwell, 49, was arrested from his West Seattle home in June following an investigation into a prostitution business he and his estranged wife, Alicia Holiwell, had begun. The investigation began after Alicia went to speak with Holiwell’s second ex-wife about the physical abuse she was suffering. This ex-wife was so shocked by what she was hearing that she went for help from a friend who worked with Holiwell in the Sheriff’s department and an investigation was opened up.

During this investigation it was discovered that Holiwell had been dealing drugs both to customers of his prostitution business as well as co-workers in the King County Sheriff’s Department. Spent and live ammunition were also stolen from the department’s firing range and sold at local gun shops for an estimated total of $15,000. Some of the ammunition that was stolen was also used in trade for drugs.
Before Holiwell’s arrest two officers with the department were put on leave for alerting Holiwell of the impending arrest. An investigation to weed out other officers who were either involved with or bought from Holiwell is ongoing.