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Suspect arrested in stabbing death
June 12, 2008 - 11:39 AM
by Staff Report
BELLINGHAM — Police Wednesday night arrested the man they allege killed a Bow man during a roadside confrontation May 11 in Bellingham’s York neighborhood.

At 9 p.m., Bellingham police arrested Derek Collier, 23, of Whatcom County in a trailer in the 2200 block of Yew Street on a charge of second-degree murder.

Police believe that Collier confronted David Datskiy after the victim pulled his car over to allow Collier to pass in the 1500 block of James Street on May 11, according to documents filed in Whatcom County Superior Court.

Rather than driving past, Collier stopped, exited his white Cadillac DeVille, police said. During a verbal confrontation, Collier stabbed Datskiy with a knife. Collier then fled the scene in the Cadillac. Datskiy, 20, died at the hospital. Datskiy and Collier didn’t know each other.

On Tuesday evening, Bellingham police got a break in the case. Around 6 p.m. Tuesday, Skagit County sheriff’s deputies stopped Collier’s Cadillac on Chuckanut Drive near Bow Hill Road.

Collier wasn’t in the car, but the driver, a friend of Collier’s, told investigators that he had just purchased the car from him, deputies said.

Investigators “aggressively” pursued leads, learning of Collier’s whereabouts, according to a prepared news release from Bellingham police. Collier was arrested without incident and was booked into the Whatcom County Jail, officers said.