Whatcom girl escapes kidnap attempt, and parents got key details to help arrest a suspect
A Burlington man was being held without bail in Whatcom County Jail after his arrest on suspicion of trying to kidnap a teenage girl last month in the Glenhaven area south of Bellingham.
Paul David Donston, 43, was arrested Wednesday morning, Oct. 26, and booked into jail.
Skagit County sheriff’s deputies arrested Donston at his home and transferred custody to Whatcom County deputies, who had conducted the investigation, Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Deb Slater told The Bellingham Herald.
Donston is facing charges of kidnapping and luring in connection with a Sept. 13 incident near Glenhaven and Alder drives, according to a probable cause affidavit filed with Whatcom County Superior Court.
In that incident, a man tried to persuade a 13-year-old girl who was walking along the road to get in his car, according to court documents.
The girl refused and called her parents and they circled the neighborhood in their car until the girl saw the man she said tried to abduct her — but he was sitting in a different car.
The parents reported that car’s license plate number to authorities and also wrote about the incident on a neighborhood Facebook group, which produced additional information about the case.
After several weeks of tracking down leads, Whatcom County deputies learned that Donston had borrowed the car used in the abduction attempt from its owner, according to court documents.
Deputies showed the teenage girl a photo lineup and she pointed to Donston’s photo with 99% certainty, according to court documents.
