Man found dead in rat-filled home in Kirkland area

Neighbors in the Kirkland area had complained to public-health officials for years that one reclusive homeowner was living in a filthy home infested with rodents, which the man sometimes fed.

On Monday, a King County deputy found the decomposing body of a man at the home on Finn Hill, an unincorporated area near Kirkland. The house was filled with rodents, feces and garbage.

The medical examiner has not identified the man, but the health department and neighbors believe he is Thomas H. Stone, 67, who had lived in the home with his mother for some time and became owner in 1999 after his mother's death, property records show.

Tom Ellis, a neighbor, said he began complaining to Public Health — Seattle & King County about five years ago when he and his wife began noticing rats around Stone's property. Over the years, he and other neighbors complained to Public Health, the Sheriff's Department and other officials, including County Councilwoman Jane Hague.

"I wanted to get him help," Ellis said. "And I wanted the rats to go away."

Workers from Public Health, which is in charge of overseeing complaints of rodent infestation in the county, visited the house numerous times and asked Stone to stop feeding the rats, clean up his property and hire a pest-control company, said Hilary Karasz, spokeswoman for Public Health — Seattle & King County.

Public Health investigators sent letters, levied fines, put a lien on Stone's house and eventually won a judgment that now totals more than $220,000, said Karasz. But Stone did not respond, she said.

During the summer, Ellis and his family watched as Stone threw peanuts to rats and squirrels sitting on Stone's balcony.

"In the end, he wouldn't even take out the garbage," Ellis said. "It looks like he never took down the Christmas decorations from when his mother died in 1999. It was all very Edgar Allan Poe-ish."

Finally, after his 10-year-old daughter was chased by a rat a few weeks ago in front of the house in the 13600 block of 98th Avenue Northeast, Ellis called Hague again for help. He also told Hague he had not seen Stone since October.

Hague called King County Sheriff Sue Rahr on Monday to ask that deputies check the home.

The body of the man was found in a bedroom on the second floor.

Public Health workers "did everything they are legally required to do," Hague said. "But in an extreme situation like this, where the public deserved an extra measure of attention, there could have been a way to address the situation and be a bit more aggressive."

Hague said she plans to ask for a tightening of county rules governing rodent control.

Meanwhile, neighbors are wondering what will happen to the rodent-infested property. Public Health plans to begin getting rid of the rats outside the house, Karasz said.

But the agency has to get permission to treat the pests inside the house. Since Stone has no known relatives, it may have to seek permission through the courts, she said.

And there's also the issue of who will pay for the cleanup.

"We don't have the funds to do this kind of an abatement," Karasz said. "It's a bit of a scramble to figure out how we're going to do this."

Rachel Tuinstra: 206-515-5637 or rtuinstra@seattletimes.com