Mom accused of shooting, killing daughter held without bail

RENTON, Wash. — A Kent woman was ordered to be held without bail Wednesday after police said she shot and killed her teenage daughter.

The 52-year-old woman was identified in court papers as Svetlana Laurel, a former Boeing employee.

According to a statement of probable cause released by King County prosecutors, Laurel showed up at her ex-husband’s house on Tuesday night and told her 12-year-old son she had a Christmas gift for him. She then bound the child with zip ties, stuffed a sock in his mouth and threatened to use a stun gun on him if he made noise, the report said.

When Laurel’s ex-husband and 14-year-old daughter returned to the house, Laurel used the stun gun on her ex, the report said. The girl went upstairs to her room and dialed 911. Within minutes Laurel confronted the girl – a loud noise followed, the report said.

The 12-year-old boy, who was tied up, “hopped” to his sister’s room “and saw that her head was covered in blood,” according to court papers.

The children’s father told police “he heard the sound of a single gunshot” upstairs and Laurel returned to the first floor of the house and tried to shoot him.

“The gun failed to fire, with Svetlana struggling to clear the malfunction in the pistol,” court papers said. The man then “rammed Svetlana into the wall with his shoulder, and was able to grab the pistol.”

Renton police Cmdr. Dave Leibman said when officers arrived they found the girl’s body and the man holding his ex-wife for police.

“She was just trying to do the right thing,” Leibman said about the teenager. “She was trying to get help for the family and for this to happen is just tragic.”

Laurel waived her appearance at a bail hearing Wednesday. She is being held for investigation of first-degree murder, attempted murder and unlawful imprisonment. Prosecutors said felony charges will likely be filed later this week.

In the affidavit of probable cause prosecutors said Laurel told her ex-husband she “was going to shoot him because he ruined her life.”

According to a Court of Appeals filing from April, Laurel was fighting elements of her divorce decree – alleging that she received “a disproportionate share of the community property.”

That filing said Laurel has a degree in computer science and her ex has a degree in aerospace engineering and they met while working at Boeing in Texas. They were married in 2001 and separated in 2015. Laurel, the documents said, was unhappy that her ex-husband had been granted custody of the children.

In the affidavit of probable cause in the murder case, Laurel told her son she had recently lost her job.

Sources told KOMO the teenage girl is a junior at John F. Kennedy High School in Burien. The school has not yet announced details about a vigil or a memorial service.