All that promise came to an abrupt end in 1989, when the college freshman came home from Central Washington University for Thanksgiving. Acme-area historical earthquake activity is significantly above Washington state average. Belinda Temple from Katy, Texas, appeared to have a bright future. Kevin Bowhay: They looked at it like, "No, it wouldn't be this family because They're well-liked in the community." Sheriff Bill Elfo, who was appointed top cop in 2003, described it as a place where residents don't lock their doors and leave their keys in the ignition. The lowest monthly average temperature in Acme for December is 38.5 degrees. 2013 of aggravated first-degree murder for the murder of Correctional Officer Jayme Biendl on Jan. 29, 2011 while she was on duty at the Washington State Reformatory Unit of the Monroe Correctional Complex in Snohomish County. By David Rasbach. She wanted to do well in everything she did. Kim Wagner: The Tim Bass I knew, he was different. That is, until, 2013, when two mothers were chatting while their kids played at a waterpark. When she handed him the phone, he started dialing but something wasn't right. Gerber is incarcerated at the Whatcom County Jail in lieu of $250,000 bail. coming from of all places, a pair of moms chatting at a water park. Mandy Stavik's killer Timothy Bass was caught in the most unusual way when police got some help from Bass' coworker Kim Wagner. The burden of proof is on the state of Washington, not on the defense. On November 24, 1989, Amanda Mandy Stavik was kidnapped, raped, and murdered as she went jogging near her home on Strand Road in Clipper, near Acme in Whatcom County, Washington State. Hearing Backstrom's story, Anderson told her ownwhich was far more chilling. WATCH THE FULL EPISODE NOW: bit.ly/2kxokxE Generations of families felt safe in Staviks town in rural Washington, where most people knew each other. It was such a relief. Jim Freeman [emotional reading card]: "For Mr. Freeman, the one person who has inspired and influenced me more than anyone. He was weird. I believe it was a gun. It was Mandy wearing only her running shoes. Ron Peterson: Big thorns. Molly Brighton: I was like, "Wow, what a present. Probably probably close to a hundred over the over the 30 years of workin' on the case. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port, A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador, A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk, The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron, Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus, A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. The DNA was at the heart of Tim Bass' trial. The state of Washington has a very narrow category of homicide that is age-specific. Mandy had graduated from high school only that year and had just started her first year at Central Washington University when she returned home for Thanksgiving. Back then, Detective Ron Peterson led the search team for Mandy Stavik, moving upriver in a Zodiac boat. But Detective Kevin Bowhay, who attended the same high school as Mandy, had never given up. Kim Wagner: My gut said it was him and my heart said it wasn't, because I just didn't really want to think that we all were betrayed. Tim Bass could be eligible for parole in 24 years. The most monthly precipitation in Acme occurs in November with 5.2 inches. Im disappointed at the appellate courts decision, his attorney told the Herald. Anything that would have called attention to Tim Bass? The population is 220. And I said, "Well, yes." It took three long months, and then, finally, she saw him throw away a plastic cup and later, a Coke can. GINA MALONE [on witness stand]: He asked her, "Can we say dad did it?". Acme is a tiny town located in the state of Washington. Found the resolution to each, I know who really killed Chanin, her husband did not, I have so many questions about this story. Det. Now, four years later, a female co-worker who has not been publicly named asked why. Molly Brighton: Mandy, she was larger than life. The 18-year-old was completely naked except for socks and sneakers. (The US average is 35.4) NOTE: The city of Acme, Washington does not have FBI Crime Statistics. The investigators had come once before in 2013, asking about a delivery truck driver named Timothy Bass. Gina Malone: I felt like his servant "Go get me a drink. I'm just an ordinary person. Like, you have to be careful about what you say. Information was received pertaining to literally hundreds of potential suspects, and leads were followed up locally, in other states, and foreign countries, including in Asia. One of the names now on the list was Bass. And I love that. Do the right thing, do the right thing.". Anderson contacted another Mount Baker High graduate Detective Ken Gates. Um, oh, yeah. The sheriff's office is asking the . She went for a run the day after Thanksgiving, taking a very regular route that she often took. The smallest thing would anger him. It's very difficult to review this case, as there, The FBi has been murdering people for years since their, Clearly its hard for some people to understand that although, What is taking so long? Kim Wagner [emotional]: That they knew, and so that's why I did it. Back in 1989, Tim Bass lived down the road from Mandy Stavik and she often jogged past his house on her regular running routewhich is how he fixated on her, police believe. Sheriff Bill Elfo told ABC News that that shot Bass to the top of the suspect list. He actually ended up firing the gun. Mulryan and OKeefe are suspected of being involved in the homicide of 21-year-old Darian D. Sather of Sedro Woolley. The Whatcom County Sheriff's Office has identified another man wanted in a planned robbery that ended in the death of a woman in Acme over the weekend. 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It was June 2013. He kept to himself, and, for the most part, worked and came home. And his employer, Franz Bakery, would not voluntarily allow investigators to swab for a sample without a warrant or subpoena. At that time, the police couldnt get a DNA sample because the company wanted a search warrant and they didnt have probable cause for a warrant. The manager, Kim Wagner, directed them to the companys human resources department and didnt think too much of it because they hadnt given her any specifics about the investigation. She returned to her hometown of Acme, Washington, for Thanksgiving break. Kevin Bowhay: By weapon, that's what they used to gain to control of her. Do you live in Acme, Washington? Some schools closed, others delayed, City to buy 12 acres to expand this trail and park on Bellinghams north side, Man indicted for allegedly embezzling $25,000 from Lummi Nation store, Man arrested after allegedly raping Bellingham victims he met via a dating app, Whatcom man held in attack on woman in rural neighborhood, Suspect rammed Whatcom patrol car and fled. Peter Van Sant: And what do you say to those who say, "Prove It?" But authorities hit roadblocks and dead ends. Hold him accountable. [chokes up]. I thought that it was kind of obvious that they had used an intermediary to collect evidence against Bass in an area where they were previously prohibited from getting evidence themselves, which violated a fundamental privacy interest, Basss attorney told the Herald. The police were again circling the Franz Bakery Outlet in the spring of 2017, hungry for information, and now she knew why. He remains in custody. Randomly, one of the mothers brought up a notorious case from years ago in Acme the unsolved rape and murder of a beloved local young woman, 18-year-old Mandy Stavik, a recent graduate of. All the factors contributed to the polices interest in Bass as a suspect by 2013. And, so, you'd tend to kinda stay away from people like that. But if this anonymous womans freelance forensic work, pushed by a desire to do right, was the means of closing a 28-year-old cold case, it was also what threatened the prosecutions case. In the fall of 1989, Ms Stavik was a freshman at Central Washington University. Bowhay noticed that a local drug dealer named John Wisnewski had been questioned because he told people he might know who murdered Mandy. But they wanted to cast a wider net of potential suspects to be sure they were on the right path. That just happened.'. Det. All dead ends. And it may well not have been a sexual assault. Gina Malone: He said, "I just want to let you know I slept with Mandy." Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Gerber said he, Mulryan and OKeefe, who was seated in the back, drove to the park just before dawn Saturday. The defendant does not have a criminal record, but has had previous run-ins with the court system. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Anderson had never told anyone in law enforcement of her suspicions. It was updated on July 18, 2020.]. When she failed to return home, her family began to panic. Population 220. She says they all piled into a friend's truck including Tim Bass, who was sitting next to her. Molly Brighton: I was terrified. And for the past 25 years, Tim had been living a quiet life in a nearby community, married with three children, and driving a delivery truck for a bakery. Runnin' through the blackberries.". Were still tracing down 7,859 leads, a Whatcom County sheriffs detective told the local press. Stavik's murder seemed unsolvable the case hung over the small tight-knit community like a dark cloud. Peter Van Sant: And you were just watching your kids coming down the waterslide? December 15, 2022 1:30 am. He married another Mount Baker graduate, Gina Malone. So, I grabbed it and then I was like [laughs] I threw it in my desk drawer. Det. Go get make me food.". In total, some 30 local men gave DNA samples. This yields a total of 107 sex offenders in Washington per 100,000 residents which is 60% less than the national average. Det. Mandy Stavik Mandy's family life had not been easy but she loved spending time with them whenever she got the chance. Kevin Bowhay: We developed this list we called it a DNA sweep. Bass was, by then, married and working as a driver at a bakery. Lastly, he refused to give the police a DNA sample to compare to the DNA found at the crime scene. He was not originally a suspect in 1989, according to Elfo. Det. He began scouring the case file, pouring over old leads and old suspects. July 18, 2020 / 11:04 PM That no one saw the two of them together. Det. WATCH NIGHTLINE EPISODES: abc.go.com/shows/nightline ALSO AVAILABLE ON HULU: hulu.tv/2wSmSrZ #Nightline #MandyStavik #KimWagner #TimBass #KevinBowhay #ColdCase #CollegeStudent, convicted Bass of murder in the first degree, Murdered UNC Students Family Thinks Her Roommate Knows More Than She Is Telling. Heather Backstrom: We decided, a bunch of us, to go to Dairy Queen. And it was kinda, like, "OK, I think we're bein' played here." His arraignment is scheduled for April 17. Ron Peterson: I immediately went, "Oh my God, she was runnin' away. Kevin Bowhay: So, about three months later, we got the results from the state crime lab and Katie from the crime lab says, "Kevin, we've got a match.". JUDGE OLSON: For 30 years you have lived free from the responsibility for your acts, but that life has been a lie and tragically it has caught your family, your mother, your brother, your ex-wife and your children in its web. ' Wagner said. Would your findings be consistent in all regards with that hypothetical? The next day, November 27, Ms Stavik was discovered floating in the Nooksack River, three and a half miles from her family home. Six weeks later, it was time for sentencing. Peter Van Sant: Mandy had come home for Thanksgiving break. Prosecutor Dave McEachran: Because he's making it up. The unemployment rate in Acme is 6.7% (U.S. avg. As the jury in the Mandy Stavik case deliberated, the hours felt like an eternity. Also, he was charged with first-degree rape and first-degree kidnapping too. Investigators believe the attacker had kicked the dog into a ditch before abducting Mandy, and then sexually assaulted her about 5 miles away from where she was jogging. ", Kim Wagner: at this point I'm thinking, "I'm working with somebody that potentially did this to Mandy and I gotta know.". Peter Van Sant: If Tim Bass sitting in his home was lookin' out the window, could he have seen Mandy running by? Merrilee Anderson: I thought it was Tim Bass, because of the experiences that I had had with him in the past. Authorities began searching. The sheriffs office is asking the publics help in locating 23-year-old Tyler James OKeefe. I really, really never dreamed I really never dreamed it. Reporter Denver Pratt joined The Bellingham Herald in 2017 and covers courts and criminal and social justice. And she was. According to a news conference held after Basss arrest by Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo, eventually his investigators tried to shake loose names from the community in the 2010s. Gerber said after Sather gave Mulryan money, Mulryan yelled at him to drive away. Det. Police arrested Timothy in December 2017 after his DNA matched with the DNA found on Mandy . Tim Bass says he's innocent and that he had a secret that explains everything. Luckily the police were able to recover male DNA from her remains, so all they needed to do was find a match. Kevin Bowhay said. Molly named her daughter after her sister Mandy. Mandy ran right in front of him while heading towards her home, about an eighth of a mile from where he saw her. But it's a big leap between thinking you have your man and convicting him in a court of law. The shop, a branch of a commercial outfit supplying baked goods to customers across the region, was on an empty two-lane road north of Bellingham, Washington. Acme is located in the South Fork Valley between the northern Cascade Mountains and Lake Whatcom. She alleged in court filings that he was both physically and verbally abusive to her and their three children. She was raped. Paul Snider allegedly killed two men near 80th and . 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