Colin Frederick Boswell, a 48-year-old Edmonds man, is charged in the Eva Spa attack of September 7, 2025, in which two massage therapists were beaten unconscious with a metal coat rack inside the business at 9726 Edmonds Way. He faces two counts of first-degree attempted murder, two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of unlawful imprisonment, and one count of first-degree burglary, and has been held at the Snohomish County Jail on $1 million bail since the day of the attack.1Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Suspect Charged The case has stalled while the court orders a mental competency evaluation.2Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Mental Health Evaluation
What Happened Inside Eva Spa
On the afternoon of September 7, 2025, Boswell entered Eva Spa Massage, locked the front door behind him, and used a metal coat rack to beat two female massage therapists until both were unconscious, according to court documents and surveillance footage. A customer who was inside at the time managed to escape.1Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Suspect Charged The violence moved outside, where exterior cameras recorded Boswell tackling one of the victims as she tried to flee. The spa’s owner eventually got away and ran to a nearby business, where a property manager’s employee called police.3Yahoo News. Edmonds Spa Workers Brutally Attacked
The owner suffered deep cuts that required stitches and was still recovering more than a month later. The second victim, an employee, was injured badly enough that she had not been able to return to work.3Yahoo News. Edmonds Spa Workers Brutally Attacked
Arrest and What Boswell Told Police
Boswell drove away from the spa but was located a short time later in a business plaza across the street, identified from witness descriptions. Officers found him wearing bloody gloves, with his belongings scattered near a dumpster. A frisk turned up a Leatherman knife in his pocket, but court documents indicate it was not used in the assault.4Fox 13 Seattle. New Video Edmonds Spa Attack1Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Suspect Charged
While being taken into custody, Boswell made unsolicited statements. Court documents quote him saying, “I’m very displeased that I didn’t kill those ladies, but I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do it. I didn’t even bring a blade.” He also told officers he had intended to kill the women.1Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Suspect Charged4Fox 13 Seattle. New Video Edmonds Spa Attack
Was the Attack Targeted
Investigators believe the assault was not random. One of the victims recognized Boswell as a previous customer when he arrived, and a witness inside the business told detectives he made statements during the attack indicating it was targeted.5Lynnwood Times. Edmonds Massage Assault Surveillance footage from late August 2025, roughly a week before the attack, shows Boswell entering the same spa wearing a mask, paying at the register, and leaving.4Fox 13 Seattle. New Video Edmonds Spa Attack A motive remained under active investigation as of the most recent reporting.
Charges and Bail
Boswell was booked into Snohomish County Jail on September 7, 2025, with bail set at $1 million.6Snohomish County Jail Register. Inmate Detail – Colin Frederick Boswell He was formally charged on September 10, 2025, with two counts of first-degree attempted murder, two counts of unlawful imprisonment, and one count of burglary.7Edmonds Beacon. Update on Assault at Edmonds Massage Parlor Two counts of first-degree assault were also filed.3Yahoo News. Edmonds Spa Workers Brutally Attacked
Competency Evaluation and Trial Delay
The case has not moved forward on its original schedule. Boswell refused to appear at at least six scheduled court hearings, and statements he made raised questions about his mental state. Judge Millie M. Judge struck a scheduled arraignment and ordered a mental health evaluation to determine whether he is competent to stand trial.2Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Mental Health Evaluation
A jury trial had been scheduled for mid-November 2025, but the competency proceedings pushed that date back indefinitely.4Fox 13 Seattle. New Video Edmonds Spa Attack Under Washington law, when a court finds reason to doubt a defendant’s competency, proceedings are paused until an evaluation is completed; if the defendant is found incompetent, the state may attempt restoration before the case can move forward. Boswell remains in custody awaiting the results of the evaluation, and no new trial date has been set.2Fox 13 Seattle. Edmonds Spa Attack Mental Health Evaluation
Boswell’s Prior Record
Court records show Boswell has 18 prior convictions going back to 1992, when he was still a juvenile. The convictions span Washington, Oregon, and Texas.8MyNorthwest. Edmonds Spa Assault Attack They include robbery, assault, forgery, identity theft, and drug possession.3Yahoo News. Edmonds Spa Workers Brutally Attacked The length of that record has drawn public attention in Edmonds, with residents and business owners questioning why Boswell was free at the time of the attack.