Murder reward increased

July 16-A reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the death of Nicole Pietz was increased by her family to $26,000.

The body of Pietz, 32, who lived in Lynwood, was found in Burien in early 2006. Police detectives have reported no reported suspects in the unsolved case.

Her car was later found in Seattle's University District. She was last seen at her Lynwood home Jan. 27, 2006.

The announcement by Gael Schneider, her mother, more than doubled the reward, most of it offered by the family. It includes $1,000 from King County Crime Stoppers.

Pietz, who worked at Cingular Wireless in Bothell, had been strangled, detectives said.

Anyone with information about this case can call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-274-6313.

Woman died in bathtub

July 17-The King County Medical Examiner's office said a Burien woman whose body was left in a bathtub for three days died of a heart attack.

According to a police report, Phyllis Buchert, 47, was picked up by a 39-year-old man at a Seattle bus stop on May 18 and went to the his Lake City apartment.

The man later left to buy beer, and found Buchert in the tub when he returned.

He reportedly told officers that he planned to bury the woman, but changed his mind and poured cold water over her body to keep it from decomposing.

The man stayed in the apartment for three days before calling his boss, who told him to call police.

No charges have been filed against him.

SeaTac

July 18-The King County Medical Examiner's office identified the taxi driver found dead inside his burned-out cab on July 10 as Jagjit Singh.

The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, the medical examiner said, and his death has been ruled a homicide.

Singh's body was found inside his burned Farwest taxi, near the intersection of South 177th Street and 38th Avenue South east of Sea-Tac International Airport, by firefighters who responded to a 3:30 a.m. alarm for a car fire.

King County Sheriff's spokesman John Urquhart said the body was burned beyond recognition. There are no known suspects in the case.

Tukwila

July 19-police arrested a man armed with a knife after he allegedly tried to kidnap a woman in her car in the parking lot of a Costco store.

The 34-year-old woman reportedly was driving from a Costco parking lot, just off Andover Park East, when she noticed a man in the back seat of her car.

As he allegedly tried to attack the woman, she began screaming and attracted the attention of other people who were in the parking lot.

Investigators said the man got out of the car and tried to run off, but witnesses chased him down and held him until police arrived.

Identified as Patrick J. Velez, a convicted sex offender, the suspect was booked into the King County Jail for investigation of kidnapping and assault.

He apparently crawled into the back seat of the woman's car after she loaded her groceries into the vehicle and went to return her shopping cart.

Compiled by Ralph Nichols