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Seattle gas station killing suspect arrested in Chicago as Wisconsin deaths investigated
Michael Anthony O’Neal Fleming, 33, was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Chicago after Seattle prosecutors charged him in the fatal shooting of gas station clerk Graeme Dobbeck. He is also a person of interest in the deaths of his mother and her husband in Kenosha, Wisconsin; authorities there have not announced charges in those killings.
A 33-year-old man charged in the fatal shooting of a Seattle gas station clerk was arrested in Chicago on Tuesday, Oct. 21, as authorities in Wisconsin continued investigating the deaths of his mother and her husband.
U.S. Marshals arrested Michael Anthony O’Neal Fleming, who Seattle police say is responsible for killing 36-year-old Graeme Dobbeck at a 76 gas station on Broad Street. King County prosecutors filed a murder charge against Fleming on Oct. 20 and requested bail of $5 million. He is scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 2.
According to charging documents, surveillance video shows a man believed to be Fleming entering the gas station around 5:11 a.m. on Oct. 13. After taking a drink to the counter, the suspect allegedly went to the clerk’s door and fired at least three shots at close range. The footage showed him leaving without appearing to take money, the documents say.
A customer who arrived shortly afterward found Dobbeck unresponsive behind the counter and called police. Fred Forrest told local reporters he noticed a tipped-over stool, then saw money on the floor and the clerk. Police arrived around 6 a.m.
The gas station’s owner identified the person in the footage as Fleming, a former employee at another location. The owner cited the suspect’s build and distinctive gait, according to court documents. Fleming’s last shift was Oct. 2; documents say his communications with Dobbeck were work-related.
The search extended beyond Washington after Kenosha police found Rena O’Neal, 59, and Rodney Brushwood, 57, dead from multiple gunshot wounds in their home on Oct. 19. Court documents identify O’Neal as Fleming’s mother and Brushwood as her husband. Preliminary records indicated they had been dead for several days.
Kenosha police named Fleming a person of interest in those deaths on Oct. 20. The department has not announced charges in that case. According to King County court documents, Fleming’s twin brother told investigators that recent texts from Fleming seemed erratic and that Fleming had asked for his parents’ address.
Seattle police had described Fleming as armed and dangerous while seeking him in Dobbeck’s killing. He was arrested in Chicago, where his brother said he was living. Kenosha detectives are expected to work with prosecutors there as the investigation continues.