Fugitive sex offender arrested in high-risk Seattle traffic stop

Convicted sex offender arrested in high-risk stop

A fugitive sex offender is back behind bars after the King County Sheriff's Office Metro Transit Police Street Crimes Unit, deputies and a K9 unit made a high-risk traffic stop in Seattle. 28-year-old Payton Smith is in jail, charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

SEATTLE - A fugitive sex offender is back behind bars after the King County Sheriff’s Office Metro Transit Police Street Crimes Unit, deputies and a K-9 unit made a high-risk traffic stop in Seattle.

The suspect has a history of gun and drug charges and had cut off his GPS tracker, so deputies took no chances when they moved in.

His Chevy Cruze was boxed in and backed over a curb. As deputies moved in to make the arrest, K-9 Duke was there to help bark orders.

Payton Smith, 28, came out with his hands up, and Duke helped persuade him not to run.

"If you run, my dog will bite you. Do not run. Get your hands on top of your head," the deputy ordered.

The handler then hoisted Duke onto the car’s hood, clearing a hurdle in case it turned into a foot chase.

Smith was wanted on a Department of Corrections felony escape warrant. Deputies say the registered sex offender has a long history of drug activity and the manufacturing of firearms.

Deputies had their guns drawn as Smith moved closer.

"Keep walking towards me, back up towards me," deputies ordered. "Get down on your knees. Get onto your stomach. Hands out to the side like an airplane."

With Smith in custody, a search of his car turned up drugs and gun parts.

"Pistol slide on the driver’s side floorboard, underneath some tin foil," deputies noted.

They also found several license plates, another person’s registration, and what appeared to be homemade gun slides.

With his hands cuffed and pants falling down, Smith was placed into a patrol car while questioning why he was being arrested.

"What’s this about?" he asked.

Smith was convicted in 2024 for possessing depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

He is now charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and is being held by the Department of Corrections in the SCORE Jail with bail set at $75,000.

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