Judge Won’t Drop Pang Charges
Martin Pang probably can’t be tried for murder in the deaths of four Seattle firefighters without a waiver of extradition restrictions from Brazil, a King County Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday.
Nonetheless, Judge Larry Jordan refused to dismiss murder charges stemming from the 1995 fire that destroyed a frozen food plant owned by Pang’s parents. Four firefighters died when a floor collapsed.
Jordan said he would schedule a hearing in late July or early August on whether to let prosecutors proceed with four charges of first-degree murder in addition to the one count of first-degree arson on which Pang was extradited. The trial is set to begin Sept. 24.
“The record before me, I think, contains disputed evidence as to whether there has been a waiver or not,” the judge said.