Prosecutors charged Antony Ton Le with second-degree murder after his mother was found dead Feb. 24 in a condo near Federal Way.
AUBURN, Wash. — A murder case against an Auburn-area man accused of killing his mother inside a condominium has entered a new phase after defense attorneys questioned whether he is competent to stand trial, delaying an arraignment that had been scheduled for March 4.
The court question comes after investigators said Antony Ton Le, 30, admitted he killed his 61-year-old mother, Thuy Nu Thu Ton, during an argument over school, finances and inheritance on Feb. 24. Prosecutors have charged Le with second-degree murder and secured $2 million bail, but the case cannot move in a routine way until the court addresses the defense motion and decides whether Le can understand the proceedings and assist counsel.
The investigation began with what looked at first like a welfare check. At about 1:50 p.m. on Feb. 24, deputies were called to Stonebrook Village Condos in the 28700 block of 34th Avenue South, in unincorporated King County between Auburn and Federal Way. The caller said he had found Ton unresponsive and wrapped in blankets inside the condo where he rented a room to Le. He told dispatchers she had possibly been assaulted by her son. Deputies arrived and found Ton with severe injuries to her face. Her eyes were swollen, blood was visible from her nose, and there were clear signs of trauma, according to court records. Medics tried life-saving efforts, but Ton was pronounced dead at 2:09 p.m. Deputies could not immediately make contact with Le, so a tactical team later entered the condo, found him in a bedroom and arrested him.
The papers filed in court rely heavily on what investigators say Le told them after his arrest. Detectives wrote that he said the argument with his mother grew out of tensions over school, money and inheritance. He allegedly told them the attack began around 11 a.m., when he grabbed Ton in a chokehold, threw her to the ground and stomped on her neck multiple times. According to the documents, Le said he believed she died during the assault but kept stomping. He then described trying to “heal” her by placing pillows and blankets on top of her. Investigators said he told them he listened to her make noises for about half an hour before she died, then hugged her body. The records say he did not call police because he expected his roommate to return home and do that instead. Officers also wrote that while being taken into custody, Le said, “I did it.”
Some of Le’s statements, as described by investigators, were direct and detailed. Others were strange and contradictory. Charging documents say he referred to demon possession, television, artificial intelligence and being one with starlight during the interview. At one point, records say, he blamed a demon for what happened. At another, he said he killed his mother simply to kill her and called himself a killing machine. He also said he felt disrespected by her for years. Detectives wrote that Le told them he had stopped taking medication and had used marijuana that day, but no other drugs. When asked whether he knew killing his mother was wrong, the records say he answered that it was, unless she deserved it. Those statements are likely to matter not only to the murder case itself but also to the separate question of competency now before the court.
Other records provide context for how the case reached this point. The roommate told investigators Ton often stayed at the condo to cook, clean and do Le’s laundry. He said Le had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and had a history of violence when he was not taking medication. According to the roommate’s account, Le had stopped taking his medication about five months earlier and had become increasingly hostile. The roommate told deputies he tried to avoid engaging with Le because of that change. On the day Ton died, he said he left for work while she was sitting on the couch and believed Le was in his room. When he returned, a pile of blankets in the living room caught his attention because it should not have been there. Under the blankets, he found Ton with obvious injuries and her arms folded across her chest. He then asked a neighbor to call 911 because he did not have a phone.
The official findings have matched the broad outline of the charging narrative. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office identified Ton as the victim, said she was 61 and ruled her death a homicide caused by multiple blunt force injuries. Prosecutors first appeared in court on Feb. 25 to seek bail, and the judge set bail at $2 million after finding probable cause for arrest. Two days later, on Feb. 27, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed a charge of second-degree murder against Le. That was supposed to lead next to an arraignment, where a defendant typically enters an initial plea. Instead, according to a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office, defense counsel filed a motion for a competency evaluation. In that filing, counsel said Le was irrational, delusional and showed pressured speech, all signs the defense argued may keep him from understanding the case or helping prepare a defense.
That leaves the prosecution and defense waiting on a procedural decision that could shape the entire timeline. If the court orders an evaluation, the case may pause while mental health professionals examine Le and report back. If the court later finds him competent, the arraignment can be rescheduled and the case would move ahead toward plea, motions and possible trial. If he is found incompetent, the case could enter a different legal track focused first on restoration. Those are standard legal paths, but they rest on facts still being developed in this case. What is already clear is that the allegations are severe, the admission described in the records is central, and Ton’s death has shifted from a sudden welfare check call to one of the more serious homicide prosecutions now pending in King County.
For now, the public record shows a filed murder charge, a $2 million bail order and a delayed arraignment. The next key event will be the court’s handling of the competency request, which will determine when the criminal case can resume its normal course.
Author note: Last updated March 25, 2026.