Man Who Led Home Invasion Ring Admits to Murdering Young Mom as Her Son Lay Next to Her By Liam Quinn

A man who led a home invasion ring in Washington pleaded guilty to racketeering and admitted to several underlying crimes, including the 2022 murder of a young mother, authorities say.

Christopher Johnson, 24, reached an agreement with federal prosecutors in which he pleaded guilty to racketeering and conspiracy to commit RICO on Monday, Feb. 2, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.

As a result of the agreement, prosecutors have recommended that Johnson be sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Johnson and his co-conspirators were involved in a series of violent crimes over the summer of 2022 and targeted “certain families for robberies.”

“To create a climate of fear, the robbery crew burst into homes in the middle of the night, dressed in black, claiming to be police, and with guns drawn,” prosecutors said. “They wore masks and used zip-ties to restrain the victims — including children as young as 9. They would steal any valuables they could ransack from these homes.”

The racketeering guilty plea involved the admission of a number of crimes, including multiple armed robberies, a kidnapping and a murder.

In that murder charge, the crew was accused of killing a young mother, Irah Sok, as her 7-year-old child was lying next to her in bed in August 2022. The plea agreement and associated admissions apply only to Johnson, not to his alleged co-conspirators.

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Johnson is also set to plead guilty in Snohomish County Superior Court to the murder of Sok as part of his plea agreement and will face a second, concurrent recommended 25-year sentence, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Sok is survived by her husband and son, according to a GoFundMe launched on behalf of her husband.

“Many know Irah as an incredibly talented photographer,” the organizer wrote. “She specialized in maternity and newborn photography, capturing the love and joy of motherhood, new life, and family for her clients.”