Police Seek Suspect In Death Of Teenager

Investigators on Sunday were searching for a man suspected of killing a 14-year-old girl, police said.

James Dickey, 39, was last seen Saturday morning and had been the boyfriend of the victim’s mother for several years, Bellingham police said.

Kristy Ohnstad’s body was discovered Friday night off a dirt road near Lake Samish, four days after she was reported missing. She had suffered blunt trauma to the head, according to the Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s office.

Dickey’s van was discovered at Sea-Tac Airport near Seattle on Saturday and investigators found several counterfeit identification cards inside, according to a statement issued Sunday by the Bellingham police.

Police say Dickey goes by at least two other aliases.

Dickey supposedly dropped Ohnstad off Monday morning at a gas station near her school. But the girl never reported to school, police said.

The girl had originally been reported as a possible runaway to police.

The victim’s mother, Sue Ohnstad, is cooperating with police and said she was not aware of Dickey’s other identities.