Talking Beat - from the Portland Police Bureau

Jan 24, 2012

Portland Police Bureau News

Portland Police ask you not to drink and drive

On Nov. 11, 2011 Officers Brian Sweeney, Darke Hull and Susan Voegtlin, a nurse, came to the rescue of Marine veteran James McCabe.

October 20, 2011

Spike in Portland Suicide Rate Alarms First Responders.

At the Heritage Green apartments in SE Portland, many of its residents are immigrants to the U.S. In the summer of 2011, an assault on one of its residents left them worried about the future there. The Portland Police Bureau, along with other Portland agencies, helped reduce their fears... in a grand fashion.

Drug Seizures, Traffic Enforcement and other news.

Portland Police Chief Michael Reese reflects on September 11th, 2001.

On Sunday August 7, 2011, at 11:05 a.m., a man walked up to the serving window at Starbucks, located at 1503 Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and demanded money from the employee. The suspect had his left hand behind his back as he made the demand for money, causing the employee to fear that the suspect was armed. After obtaining an undisclosed amount of money the suspect fled on foot westbound out of the area. Police officers and a K-9 unit searched the neighborhood but did not locate the suspect. The suspect is described as a white male in his 20s, 5’07”, 150 pounds, blue eyes, unknown hair color, and wearing a light blue dirty hoody, a green knitted scarf, and oversize cargo shorts.

The Portland Police Bureau, in cooperation with Crime Stoppers, is asking for the public’s help in solving an armed robbery in Southeast Portland. On Saturday July 30th at 8:25 a.m., Portland Police officers from East Precinct responded to the UC Market, located at 12540 Southeast Division Street, on the report of an armed robbery. Officers spoke with the victim and learned that the suspect approached the employee at the counter and pulled out a large kitchen knife. The suspect lunged over the counter towards the victim then reached into the open cash register and removed an undisclosed amount of money before fleeing the store on foot. The suspect is described as a light-skinned black male, approximately 19 years old, 5’09”, medium build, wearing a red zip-up hoody, a white t-shirt, black/red/white plaid shorts, and black tennis shoes. Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information, reported to Crime Stoppers, that leads to an arrest in this case, or any unsolved felony, and you can remain anonymous.

On July 17, 2011, at 5:45pm in Lewiston, Idaho, Ofc. Paul Georgioff’s motorcycle spun out from underneath him and threw his body into a guardrail. In a split second the life he knew changed.

Thanks to a tip from community residents concerned about drug activity in their neighborhood and following an extensive investigation, members of the Portland Police Bureau were able to seize thousands of pounds of marijuana and make significant arrests at 5 locations in the Portland Metropolitan area. On August 3, 2011, the Police Bureau's Drugs and Vice Division served five search warrants as part of an investigation into a Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) operated by Chinese Nationals. The Portland Police Bureau was assisted in this investigation by the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office. The investigation revealed that marijuana was being cultivated in several grow houses in the Portland Metro area then being distributed throughout the region. Three of these grow houses were specifically renovated to accommodate large-scale marijuana grows and were not occupied by any residents. This operation has no connection to medical marijuana and the D-T-O was strictly a FOR PROFIT operation. During this investigation, officers learned that in some of the grow houses, power was being diverted directly from the power poles into the houses to run the network of transformers, lights and filtration systems. This power diversion presents a clear and present danger to the neighborhood as a substantial fire hazard. Investigators believe that nearly 8 thousand dollars per month of electrical usage was being stolen by this power diversion. Evidence of sophisticated marijuana growing operations was found at residences located at 11847 Southeast Powell Boulevard, 7330 Southeast 118th Drive, and 30221 Southeast Eagle Creek Road in Clackamas. At the three grow houses, investigators seized an estimated 2 thousand marijuana plants along with growing equipment, power transformers, and packaging materials designed to ship processed marijuana. The estimated street value of the seized marijuana exceeds 2 million dollars The two other locations searched were at 1155 Southeast 148th Avenue and 7424 Southeast Clay Street in Portland. These locations were not used as grow houses but were the residences of the two suspects involved in this investigation. 45-year-old De Bin Zhen and 51-year-old Fujiu Chen were arrested and charged with multiple felony drug charges in connection with this investigation. Both will be booked into the Multnomah County Jail. These arrests conclude the investigation and the case now moves to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office for prosecution. This investigation was prompted by community concerns, and each year the Police Bureau receives numerous complaints about marijuana grow houses and associated odor, foot and vehicle traffic and violence. These things affect neighborhood livability and the Police Bureau is committed to addressing these concerns. The violence associated with grow houses is of particular concern as thieves are committing home-invasion robberies to steal marijuana and cash from growers. Community members with concerns about drug houses in their neighborhoods are encouraged to call the Drugs and Vice Division at 503-823-3784 or visit www.portlandpolice.com to file on online Drug and Vice complaint.

On July 11, 1996, the body of 22-year-old Michael Anthony Yeggins was found shot to death near the playground in Northeast Portland's Woodlawn Park. Detectives from the Portland Police Bureau Homicide Detail began an investigation but by April of 2000 the case had gone cold and remained unsolved. In January 2007, the Portland Police Bureau's Cold Case Homicide Unit began examining the case again, with the assistance of two Gang Enforcement Team detectives. Through the investigation, detectives interviewed and re-interviewed a number of witnesses in Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and Colorado. Through the continuing investigative efforts of the Cold Case Homicide Unit, a Multnomah County Grand Jury heard evidence linking 38-year-old David Deangelo McDonald to Yeggins' death and issued an indictment in July 2011 for Murder. McDonald was transferred to the Multnomah County Jail yesterday, July 27, 2011, from the Oregon Department of Corrections. McDonald is a convicted felon and has been serving a 41 month sentence for Felon in Possession of a Firearm since August 2009. The Cold Case Unit is comprised of a Sergeant, and four Detectives who are assisted by several retired investigators who volunteer their time and are now working under a Federal grant sponsored by the US Department of Justice and the National Institute for Justice. This grant pays retired investigators to review cold homicide cases. This case also used a new investigative and training method of the Multnomah County District Attorney's office who partnered with Cold Case Homicide Detectives. This case was worked on by a number of misdemeanor lawyers under the supervision of Chief Deputy Rod Underhill and Senior Deputy District Attorney Jeff Howes, to review and critique all of the evidence and offer investigation suggestions to the Cold Case Homicide Unit. The Portland Police Bureau has nearly 300 unsolved murders dating back to 1969.

The Portland Police Bureau and Portland Bureau of Transportation conducted a crosswalk enforcement action on Wednesday, July 27, to raise awareness of pedestrian safety and traffic law. The enforcement took place from 12:30 to 2 p.m. at a crossing of NE 82nd Avenue at NE Pacific Street. A crosswalk enforcement action includes a pedestrian decoy positioned at marked or unmarked crosswalks. Drivers that fail to stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk and pedestrians that jaywalk may be issued a warning or citation by the Portland Police Bureau. Crosswalk enforcement actions are an effective way to communicate pedestrian right of way laws to both drivers and pedestrians. The transportation and police bureaus do enforcement actions in response to community requests and to educate the general public on the rules at marked and unmarked crossings. They are conducted approximately once a month.