Olson looks over the site of the Pang Warehouse, where four Seattle firemen were killed fighting a blaze set by an arsonist

May 4, 1999
Web posted at: 1:53 p.m. EDT (1753 GMT)

SEATTLE (AP) -- It's a tour to die for.

Mystery buffs -- out-of-towners and locals alike -- get an earful of grisly city history on Private Eye Tours.

Proprietor Windsor Olson, a semiretired private eye, has taken about 5,000 people on the 90-minute ride in his blood-red tour bus through the streets of downtown Seattle.

In addition to the just plain curious, he reports a surprising number of kids and writers among his customers. Olson, who offers tours any time of day or night, says Halloween and the middle of the night are especially popular times.

The first stop is near Key Arena, home of the Seattle SuperSonics, where Olson tells the tale of the mysterious murder of Mrs. Lee. Born in China and once a general in the Chinese Army, Lee moved to Seattle with her husband and ran a restaurant at the Seattle Center.

Soon after she hired Olson to do surveillance on her husband -- he had a habit of disappearing in the afternoons -- Mrs. Lee turned up dead, bludgeoned to death.

The case is still unsolved.

Other tour stops include former bordellos, a mansion where signal lights once beamed to indicate Canadian boats could safely dock with rum during Prohibition, and the site of the 1995 Pang warehouse arson fire, in which four firefighters died.

What makes the tour so much fun is Olson himself, tossing out tidbits from his store of little-known facts about Seattle. He also points out tourist spots such as the Pike Place Market and good views of the city.

Olson, a private investigator since 1958, remembers when there were only seven or eight private detectives in the state. He has personally investigated over 25,000 cases and says he brought 90 percent of them to a successful conclusion.

"The biggest change in the business is the use of computers," Olson says. "But you have to remember that they are just a tool. They save a lot of legwork but you still have to go out and beat the bushes to be successful."

A founder and life member of the Pacific Northwest Association of Investigators, he gives lectures at the University of Washington law school and community colleges.

Although Olson still does some investigating and consulting for his firm, Windsor and Hatten Legal Investigators, he started the tour in 1996 when he found himself at loose ends after partially retiring a few years ago.

"All the sites we go to I picked because I have some connection to them," Olson says. "Plus, I figured everyone has wanted to be a private investigator at one time or another in their life."

Private Eye tours are $20 and begin at any downtown Seattle hotel or restaurant. Reservations are required. Phone 206-622-0590 or check out Windsor Hatton's Web site at www.PrivateEyeTours.com.

Copyright 1999   The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

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