Homicide Detectives Investigating After Body Found in First Hill. The sheriffs office is asking the publics help in locating 23-year-old Tyler James OKeefe. Anderson and Backstrom had creepy encounters with him around the time of Stavik's murder, but they had never come forward with their suspicions. His arraignment is scheduled for April 17. Out of the blue, one of the other mothers brought up the name Mandy Stavik. Det. However, after hearing each other's stories, Anderson decided to talk to police. Authorities began searching. I believe it was a gun. Woman." During an interview with investigators, Gerber said he met up with Mulryan at a friends house. "I don't know what it was about her. Det. 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. Heather Backstrom: No friend or family in the community that I lived in, 'cause of the weight of that. On 4/13/1949 at 19:55:42, a magnitude 7.0 (7.0 UK, Class: Major, Intensity: VIII - XII) earthquake occurred 102.2 miles away from the city center, causing $80,000,000 total damage Prosecutor Dave McEachran: The harm that this caused is incalculable. She says it was hardly a fairy-tale romance. Gina Malone: It didn't feel like a marriage. Mandy Stavik's killer Timothy Bass was caught in the most unusual way when police got some help from Bass' coworker Kim Wagner. Anderson contacted another Mount Baker High graduate Detective Ken Gates. At the high school, he started attending the girlss basketball games, and watching her play basketball. It was 30 years ago this past Thanksgiving weekend that Mandy Stavik, an 18-year-old college student, disappeared after going out for a jog in Acme, Washington. When she handed him the phone, he started dialing but something wasn't right. Heather Backstrom: He would talk about my eyes and say that my eyes were beautiful. Heather Backstrom and Merrilee Anderson are proud of their roles in putting Tim Bass away. Wagner came up with a plan to help police get the DNA they needed to connect Bass to the crime. On November 24, 1989, 18-year-old Stavik was home from college for Thanksgiving when she went out for a run near her home in Acme, Washington, and did not return. Det. An autopsy report was expected today on Amanda Stavik, 18. Something pink. "I'm going to lie to the judge and get the kids taken away from you" anything with my kids, I'm just like, OK. Anything that would have called attention to Tim Bass? It would be easy to get away with it., Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. But Kim Wagner knew she had one more job to do. I was like, "What?". The sheriffs office is asking anyone who may have information on the whereabouts of Mulryan or OKeefe, or about what happened at the park between 6 p.m. Friday, April 3 and 8 a.m. Saturday to call 911 or the tip line at 360-778-6663. They got some background from his younger brother Tom Bass. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin, Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Lastly, he refused to give the police a DNA sample to compare to the DNA found at the crime scene. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropria. Kevin Bowhay: We got the right guy. Det. In his interrogation after his arrest, Tim Bass claimed he had been having a secret affair with Mandy: TIM BASS INTEROGATION: Everything I've said's the truth. Police were hoping Bass would throw away an item with DNA on it, but no luck. (The US average is 35.4) NOTE: The city of Acme, Washington does not have FBI Crime Statistics. Geographic Variation Among counties with 20 or more homicides in 2009- This creek eventually dumps into the South Fork of . This search was done for a singular reason: to assist law enforcement.. Her first thought was about Mandy. For the last year, Basss lawyers have tussled with the state in court, arguing that the DNA match to Ms Stavik was the result of an illegal search. Her body was found three days. Kevin Bowhay: Oh, jeez. The sheriffs office determined Gerbers truck matched the description of the vehicle that allegedly hit and killed Sather and that he told friends he was in the Acme area when something bad happened to a girl, the court records state. GINA MALONE [on witness stand]: He asked her, "Can we say dad did it?". Mulryan gave Gerber $50 cash for his efforts, which was taken from the money they allegedly stole from Sather, court records state. Acme is a tiny town down Highway 9 in Washington State's Whatcom County. I grabbed it and I put it in my desk drawer. Basketball player, cheerleader, top student, once an aspiring airline pilot, Mandy Stavik truly stood out says her mother Mary. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha, Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Despite that testimony, defense attorney Shoshana Paige has an explanation for his behavior. The street map of Acme is the most basic version which provides you with a comprehensive outline of the city's essentials. She went for a run the day after Thanksgiving, taking a very regular route that she often took. She wanted to do well in everything she did. Tim Bass says he's innocent and that he had a secret that explains everything. This light went off in my head and I thought, Is that why the police were at my work? Tim Bass' trial was turning into a family reunion from hell. As Wagner chatted with investigators, she realized they were looking at the Mandy Stavik murder, and figured out what they were really after. And I said, "Well, yes." She alleged in court filings that he was both physically and verbally abusive to her and their three children. Judge will allow DNA evidence at trial of man accused in 1989 murder of Mandy Stavik, Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican, A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. He has finally received justice. This yields a total of 107 sex offenders in Washington per 100,000 residents which is 60% less than the national average. Thank you, you're the greatest. Eventually, after she threatened to call the police, Bass left. Housing density: 6 houses/condos per square mile Median price asked for vacant for-sale houses and condos in 2019 in this county: $202,929. Bass was found guilty of first-degree murder on May 24, 2019. Remember, when Tim Bass was first questioned in 2013, he said he barely remembered who Mandy was. Acme Map Acme is a census-designated place (CDP) in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. In the fall of 1989, Ms Stavik was a freshman at Central Washington University. McEachran was 44 when Mandy Stavik was murdered. Luckily the police were able to recover male DNA from her remains, so all they needed to do was find a match. They call Dr. Elizabeth Johnson, a forensic expert, to the stand. She was runnin' away from whoever had her. The water quality index calculated by Dwellics team in Acme is 100 out of 100 (100 being the best) based on the number of acute health-based violations for every water utility in the last 5 years. Gerber is suspected of driving the vehicle that hit and killed Sather Saturday morning, April 4, at the South Fork Park in Acme, according to Whatcom County Superior Court records. Furthermore, I don't believe I received a fair trial. The case went cold, and the murder hung like a dark cloud over this community for the next two decades. In his interrogation after his arrest, Tim Bass claimed he had been having a secret affair with Mandy Stavik. Kevin Bowhay: So, when they did the autopsy, they were able to recover male DNA from Mandy. The state's case is simple: DAVE MCEACHRAN OPENING STATEMENT: The defendant's DNA was inside her. She had it all going for her; she had a bright future ahead of her.. ''All these terrible things, all you can think is it doesn't happen to you. On November 24, 1989, 18-year-old Stavik was home from college for Thanksgiving when she went out for a run near her home in Acme, Washington, and did not return. Tom Bass: He was on the phone with her in his bedroom. Peter Van Sant: And back in 1989, 1990 Did they go to the Bass household and question people there? Basss trial is scheduled to start in April. Kim Wagner: You just never knew what Tim was gonna be at work that day. It occurred to Ron Peterson that Mandy's body may hold other important evidence. Tim Bass could be eligible for parole in 24 years. Bass' father had died more than a decade earlier. Acme is located in Whatcom County, WA . There are 2 public schools in Acme with an average Homefacts rating of D+. But several years later, Wagner and her husband and some friends were talking about Bass and it came up that he used to live on the same street as the Stavik family. It took a whole community. Kyra, her German shepherd, bolted off with her. Something doesnt, No , the murder happened in Ohio . Stavik, 18, was home from college for Thanksgiving when she disappeared. Mandy's sister Molly was overwhelmed, too. In saying that, though, the better man in me says I should say very little today and give this day to the Stavik family. Tom Bass says his brother Tim had always been a loner, but as a teenager he began to reveal deeper issues. 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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 was a high achiever, a former teacher told the Associated Press last December. Kevin Bowhay: Well, thought he was a good liar He just kept reiterating, "I don't know who did this.". The DNA was at the heart of Tim Bass' trial. Crime in Acme, Washington Crime is ranked on a scale of 1 (low crime) to 100 (high crime) Acme violent crime is 16.4. Tom Bass: I think potentially more could've been his next victims. Police began investigating Bass, and turned to the assistance of Kim Wagner, a co-worker at the bakery where he worked. And Tom Bass describes another damning incident after Tim was arrested. Peter Van Sant: What was lost for you and this community with the death of Mandy Stavik? He said, "You believe me, right?" Gerber said he accelerated to 30 mph and started swerving, but Sather was holding onto the truck. Backstrom also never discussed her concerns with anyone in the area. Tim Bass' Coke can and cup retrieved by Kim Wagner. Like, you have to be careful about what you say. Merrilee Anderson: I really wasn't ready, because we're in a small town. Many people were looked at for her murder in Acme, Washington, including the Green River Killer. Mandy was too fast a runner to catch on foot. On May 24, 2019, a jury convicted Bass of murder in the first degree. 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. So, I grabbed it and then I was like [laughs] I threw it in my desk drawer. On the Friday after the holiday, Ms Stavik left for a jog around . An extensive search began, which ended three days later with the tragic discovery of Mandys body lying face down in the Nooksack River. Thankfully, a colleague of the killer agreed to help the cops by giving them a water cup he had drunk from. Brent Scott Gerber, 47, of Maple Falls was arrested Monday, April 6, by the sheriffs office on suspicion of first-degree murder. Ron Peterson: It was like an assault on all of us. By David Rasbach. And he apparently had a pistol with him. Peter Van Sant: Any criminal record? Kevin Bowhay: I started goin' through, "Who's been interviewed? Please enter valid email address to continue. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy, Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq, A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France, A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. This was a case that had lain cold for nearly 30 years until investigators received a tip-off that sent them in the direction of Mandys neighbor Timothy Bass. And to me, it can't be enough time. Ed Beaman | Juror: When we go in and deliberate, we had to turn in to be investigators and attorneys, too. Back then, Detective Ron Peterson led the search team for Mandy Stavik, moving upriver in a Zodiac boat. The community could feel safe and be whole again. It also happened to be her birthday. "Then why would your DNA be inside her? Bowhay noticed that a local drug dealer named John Wisnewski had been questioned because he told people he might know who murdered Mandy. It would now be at the heart of the jury's deliberation. JIM FREEMAN EULOGY: You see her smiling back at you right at your soul with eyes that say, "I love life.". Were still tracing down 7,859 leads, a Whatcom County sheriffs detective told the local press. Tim Bass, along with his brother and father, had never been asked to give a DNA sample. Peter Van Sant: You must've been scared. Ron Peterson: We're upstream from where I recovered her. Investigators believed she had been sexually assaulted, knocked out and placed in the river to drown. Wendy Aughe was 29 when she went missing in 1987. 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