Trash, bullets and feces found in former Sonic Swift's squalid home
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SAMMAMISH, Wash. -- It wasn't the pile of beer bottles or the smashed glass on the fireplace. It wasn't even the El Camino sitting in the driveway, unable to move because it has no engine.
It was the smell.
"The first thing you get when you walk in the door is kind of whiff of whatever is festering in here," said Jessica Ko-Dalzell. She and her husband Eric now own a mansion on a hill Sammamish.
The house was owned by former Seattle Sonic and first round pick Robert Swift. He lost the home to foreclosure last year. The Dalzells bought it, but Swift has been living in it ever since.
"He never came to the door, he never talked to any of us. We came multiple times. We sent him letters. We left him letters," Ko-Dalzell said.
At some point this past weekend, Swift and others moved out of the home. The Dalzells had their first full look inside Monday.
"It was a shocker. It was definitely a shocker," Eric said.
Animal feces clogs the deck. Walls are punched out on different levels of the house. One even has an autograph. Pizza boxes and beer bottles are piled on the kitchen granite.
Multiple guns were found in the home. Some appear to be air guns, but live ammo was also found. Dalzell said they also found a handgun.
A makeshift shooting range is in the basement storage area. Eric Dalzell said load-bearing beams have graze marks from bullets, and part of the home's foundation appeared to stop some of the slugs.
A box of letters from colleges around the nation sat pushed against a downstairs wall. It looked like another trash box. Crests and logos of UCLA, Arizona, UConn and others are jammed together as untold memories of what could have been for Swift.
He never attended one of those powerhouse schools. He didn't even open some of the letters. Swift was drafted right out of high school to play in Seattle as a pro.
After injuries and a stint playing in Japan, he moved back to his mansion in Sammamish. Only now, with the threat of eviction looming, Swift left the house on the hill.
The house that wasn't his anymore.
It was the smell.
"The first thing you get when you walk in the door is kind of whiff of whatever is festering in here," said Jessica Ko-Dalzell. She and her husband Eric now own a mansion on a hill Sammamish.
The house was owned by former Seattle Sonic and first round pick Robert Swift. He lost the home to foreclosure last year. The Dalzells bought it, but Swift has been living in it ever since.
"He never came to the door, he never talked to any of us. We came multiple times. We sent him letters. We left him letters," Ko-Dalzell said.
At some point this past weekend, Swift and others moved out of the home. The Dalzells had their first full look inside Monday.
"It was a shocker. It was definitely a shocker," Eric said.
Animal feces clogs the deck. Walls are punched out on different levels of the house. One even has an autograph. Pizza boxes and beer bottles are piled on the kitchen granite.
Multiple guns were found in the home. Some appear to be air guns, but live ammo was also found. Dalzell said they also found a handgun.
A makeshift shooting range is in the basement storage area. Eric Dalzell said load-bearing beams have graze marks from bullets, and part of the home's foundation appeared to stop some of the slugs.
A box of letters from colleges around the nation sat pushed against a downstairs wall. It looked like another trash box. Crests and logos of UCLA, Arizona, UConn and others are jammed together as untold memories of what could have been for Swift.
He never attended one of those powerhouse schools. He didn't even open some of the letters. Swift was drafted right out of high school to play in Seattle as a pro.
After injuries and a stint playing in Japan, he moved back to his mansion in Sammamish. Only now, with the threat of eviction looming, Swift left the house on the hill.
The house that wasn't his anymore.
Story of the week!! Who Cares! Looks like the guy threw a party. Obviously this story is pure genius full of shock and intrigue. I couldn't agree with Shorin more. I guess I missed the part about a crime being committed. I don't believe losing your home to a foreclosure is a reason to have your personal belongings, bad choices, or house cleaning abilities published for the general public, but like I already said, Its such a wonderful story. Great job to everyone involved in getting this story out to the readers!
Obviously Swift is in a real bad psychological place right now. Maybe the new owners could have a little decency and not put his wreckage on display for the public. The new owners are the disgusting pigs if you ask me. Obviously they got the house for a steal. If they wanted something move in ready they could have selected a house on the retail market, not an occupied forclosure at auction. They're shining a spotlight on a mans darkest hours and making a spectacle of him. Where did their mansion money come from?Â
@shorin I believe that anyone that would trash a house like this is a disgusting pig.  Everyone goes through good and bad times, it's how you handle them that reveal your character.  A person of integrity that goes through a bad time in their life doesn't throw a tantrum and destroy property that doesn't belong to them.  That's why he did it; it doesn't belong to him so he doesn't have to clean it up.  The sad part is that it reveals the mess that is going on inside him and that he will have to clean up. Â
I don't know how or why the new owners would purchase a house unseen, which it seems must have happened, but I would have been appalled at the situation too. Â When people hit rock bottom they need to face what they have done / are doing so to have it put in the public eye may help Swift. Â It does no good to pretend it didn't happen or sweep it under the rug; that's called enabling.
@shorin You can take the man out of the hood, but......
If you're a public figure, then expect that your life, or actions in your life will be public knowledge.
@shorin Been am entitlement loser long?
@I812 @shorin I don't think I understand the connection. Do I receive entitlements? No. Do I think it's important for humans to have compassion for eachother? Yes. Any more questions?
J R Rider left his house trashed
Portland made Odem a alcoholic
Sure, even drove him to the liquor store.
@Bert Yeah, cities definitely have a long history of turning people into alcoholics... not like it was his own choice or anything, ya' know? ;)
I gotta feel sorry for a guy who has to live on 20 million
Here's a thought for those that skip college, to pursue the NBA dream right out of high school. Take 1/2 that money, save it, and use it to pursude the education post-NBA. A kid can get injured and be out of the game indefinitely just as easily in college as they can NBA, if they at least do something smart with the money they get from the NBA, they can at least pay for that education after they leave the NBA.
Go to school kids. Â There is no sure thing in life.Â
Guess he should have waited on the NBA and pursued his education, something to fall back on when sports fell flat. The guy is trash, and no matter how you try to dress it up, it's still trash. What a disgusting human being.
Let me guess ... alcoholics and/or drug addicts. That $10 million he was paid to play basketball sure went a long way, didn't it? Now he has no money, no game, and no education, which all adds up to no future. But we do love a good game of hoops, don't we?Â
What a bunch of pigs.