Man arrested in 1989 rape, murder of teen near Bellingham
Authorities have arrested a man in connection with the rape and murder of a teenager near Bellingham nearly 30 years ago.
The Bellingham Herald reports Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo said DNA evidence led to the arrest of 50-year-old Timothy Bass of Everson on Tuesday.
Sheriff’s detectives arrested Bass on suspicion of murder, kidnapping and rape.
Mandy Stavik vanished in 1989 on the Friday after Thanksgiving while jogging near her home east of Bellingham in Acme. When her German shepherd returned home alone, a search began.
A volunteer firefighter found her body during a search three days later in the South Fork of the Nooksack River.
Cause of death was listed as not inconsistent with drowning, and authorities said she may have been alive when she was dumped in the river.
