P agi -: B4
J une 23, 1993 • T he P ortland O bserver
Update-Hank Robbery Suspects
Arrested \fter Shooting At Officers
I S Haul-14-15 A. Hayden Island
D riv e
O n Friday. June IS. 1993 at ap­
p ro xim a te d Id T ic im . N orth Precinct
O ffice rs responded to the US Bank.
1445 N. Hayden Island D rive, regard­
in g an armed robbery w hich had ju st
occurred Upon officers" a rriva l they
were told that tw o armed suspects,
entered the bank, held up two tellers
and lied w ith an undisclosed amount
o f cash The suspects were last seen in
a 1972 Brow n colored Buick Regal A
description o f the suspects and their
vehicle was broadcast to surrounding
officers.
A t approximately 11 07 am o ffic ­
ers located the suspect vehicle at the
C o m fo rt Inn M otel located at 4.31 NE
M u ltn o m a h Street As additional o f­
ficers began to converge on the area,
the tw o suspects, left th e ir room. #242.
ran to room #119, w hich w asopen and
faces NE M a rtin Luther K in g Jr. B l\d .
(M L K ) and jum ped out the window
onto NE M L K
Both suspects were
armed, one w ith a 40 caliber Glock
sem i-autom atic pistol and the other
w ith a Rugcr, model P 8 9 ,9nun semi­
autom atic pistol.
O fficers began to pursue the sus­
pects. westbound, crossing NE M L K
in to the Lyons Restaurant. 1215 NE
M L K . parking lot. e x itin g the parking
lot onto to NE 3rd Avenue.
I lie tw o suspects shot at pursuing
officers, w ho returned lire As the o f­
ficers chased the suspects two marked
police cars were h it by the suspects
g u n fire .A s the suspects crossed the
1200 block o f NE 3rd Avenue, one o f
the suspects jum ped over some shrub­
bery. landing on the front w indshield
o f a Red Toy ota Tercel. The suspect
ran across the Holladay Park Medical
C e n te r P a rk in g lo t. 1225 N E
2 n d A v e n u e a n d a tte m p te d to
take cover behind tw o trees, directly
in front o f the Holladay Park Medical
C e n te r. F ro m b e h in d the trees,
the suspects shot at the o fficers.
The suspects left th e ir position o f
cover, w ith one o f the suspects,
div mg through a plate glass w indow ,
fo llo w e d by the second suspect.
O ffice rs pursued the suspects into
the lobby, where the suspects surren­
dered.
I hcsuspcctshave tcnlalivcly been
id entified as Gable Lee Eaton D O B 9-
18-65 and D arrell Lavon Steele DOB
l-21-()7. D u rin g the exchange o f gun­
fire. Eaton, who was armed w ith the
40 caliber G lock pistol, was wounded
in the right leg Steele, w howasarmed
w ith the 9mm Roger, sustained head
lacerations, as result o f d iv in g , head
first, through the window Both sus­
pects were taken to Enutnucl Hospital,
where they were treated and released
into police custody .
No officers or citizens were in ­
jured d u rin g this incident.
Investigators are looking into the
possibility that these two suspects may
have been involved in an earlier rob­
bery, in th c stale ol'W ashington. w ith in
the last tw o weeks The suspects arc
allegedly from W ashington D C. and
hav e no local record here in Portland
E aton and Steele have been
charged w ith Robbery in the First
Degree and Attem pted M urder They
are being held in the Justice Center
Jail, in lieu o f $100,000 bail and ar­
raignm ent is scheduled for 2:00 PM
Monday , June 21. 199.7.
Photographs o f the suspects arc
not available at this tim e, pending
further investigation The investiga­
tion is continuing.
Shooting Investigation
4745 N E 15 th Avenue
O n Thursday. June 17, 1993 at
approxim ately 12:23am, N orth Pre­
cinct O fficers were summoned to 4745
NE 15th Av enue regarding a woman
who had been shot by a bullet w hich
came through the front w indow. Upon
the a rriva l o f officers and medical
personnel, they found a woman iden­
tifie d as Eddie H arris D OB 2-24-48,
w ho rcsidcsat the residence, suffering
from a gunshot would to the left calf.
H arris was transported to a local hos­
pital for treatment. A t the scene o ffic ­
ers recovered an undisclosed caliber
and number o f shell casings at the
scene.
Reportedly, the shooting is a re­
sult o f an incident, w hich occurred
earlier in the evening, in v o lv in g H ar­
ris ' IS y c a ro ld grandson. A llegedly at
approxim ately 12:0()pm, Wednesday,
June 16. 1993. at NE 15th Avenue and
W ygant Street, the 18 year old grand­
son. who is considered a gang a ff ili­
ate, became involved in an altercation
w ith some riv a l gang members. A fte r
Ihc altercation the 18 year old grand­
son ran in to his grandm other’s, H ar­
ris ', home to seek refuge.
A pparently. the suspects came to
the residence and fired several shots
through H a rris ’ bedroom w in d o w
w ounding H arris w ho w as in her bed­
room window The intended v ic tim
was not at the residence a Ihc tim e o f
the shooting
The shooting is considered gang
related No arrests have been made
and the investigation is continuing
Update-Kidnap/Rape Suspect
Investigation
l.o ca tio n -N E 118th Avenue and
Prescott Street
Wednesday. June 16,1993,w h ile
canv assing the area o f NE 118th A v ­
enue and Sandy Blvd. searching for
vv itncsscs w ho may observcd G ilberto
Roman Chi-Espejo DOB 10-2-72, who
was arrested for the rape and kidnap o f
a 12 year old g irl. Detective M ike
Stahlman encountered a vv itness who
saw the vic tim being dropped o ff in
the area o f NE 118th Avenue and
Sandy Blvd. This was contrary to the
story that investigators were firs t told,
w hich was, that the v ic tim escaped,
after h ittin g C hi-Espejo w ith a beer
bottle and fleeing from the area o f NE
135th Avenue and W h ita ke r Way.
Detective M ik e Stahlman re-con­
tacted the v ic tim and was given a
slig h tly different version o f events
w hich led up to the M onday, June 14,
1993 rape. The v ic tim to ld Detective
Stahlman that she observed the sus­
pect d riv in g a 1985 Black Dodge
C h a rg e r, O re g o n lic e n s e p la te
SCM854. The v ic tim was fa m ilia r
w ith several other subjects who drove
this same car but not C hi-Espejo C h i-
Espejo allegedly drove by the v ic lim ,
who was w a itin g at the bus stop, lo ­
cated at NE 118th Av enue and Sandy
Blvd. at about 8:30 am.
Chi-Esocjo. drove by twice, ask­
ing the v ic tim i f she wanted a ride to
school. The v ic tim turned down C h i-
Espcjo's first request but accepted a
ride the second tim e Chi-Espejo asked.
Instead o f taking the v ic tim d i­
rectly to school, as requested, C h i-
Espejo drove the vic tim to an isolated
area in Troutdale, Oregon and raped
her. A fle rth c a tla c k , Chi-Espejo drove
th c v ic tim b a c k to th c a rc a o fN E 118th
Avenue and Sandy B lvd, released the
v ic tim , at w hich lim e the v ic tim re­
ported the incident to her father at
approximately 120 0 noon
O riginally inv est igators were told
by the v ic tim that she was forced in to
a car by a stranger and escaped after
h ittin g her attacker on the head w ith
an empty bottle o f beer.
Chi-Espejo was arraigned yester­
day on charges o f K id n a p and Rape in
the First Degree.
A grand Jury is expected to hear
ev idence in this case w ith in the next
tw o weeks
The investigation is continuing.
Public Assistance Sought In
Homicide Investigation
N. C oncord Avenue A n d ( io in g
C ourt
H om icide Detectives arc seeking
th e p u b lic 's a ssista n ce in th e
hom icide investigation o f Lawana
J a n c llc T r ip le t t D O B 3 -2 9 -6 4 .
T rip le tt’ s body was discovered Tues­
day, June 15. 1993 at N. Concord
Avenue and G oing court, by school
ch ild re n in shrubbery next to a con­
crete b a rrie r that parallels N. G oing
Street. A n autopsy conducted Wednes­
day. June 16. 1993 determined that
T rip le tt died from abdominal injuries
and strangulation.
D etectives have learned that
T r ip le t t was la s t seen w a lk in g
w estbound on N E A lb e rta Street
from NE 16th Avenue, shortly after
m id n ig h t, Tuesday. June 15. 1993.
E arlier. T rip le tt had stopped at tw o
local tav erns, located on N E A lberta
Street.
Any one w ith info rm a tio n regard­
ing T rip le tt, isaskedtocon'.acl Detec­
tive Dave Rubcy o f Ihc H om icide
D etail at (50.7) 796-3400. No arrest
have been made and the investigation
is c o n tin u in g . A p h o to g ra p h o f
T rip le tt is available at the Id e n tifica ­
tion D ivisio n . 12th llo o r o f Ihc Justice
Center.
Robbery Suspect A rre ste d
Taco H ell - 1024 N E 82n d Avenue
On Saturday. June 19. 199.3 at
approxim ately 3:14 am, East Precinct
U n ifo rm O fficers responded to the
Taco Bell Restaurant. 1024 NE 82nd
Avenue, regarding an A rm ed Rob­
bery w Inch had just occurred. O fficers
w ere adv ised tliat.a lone suspect, armed
w ith a gun. wearing a mask, had ju st
driven through the drive-up window
and robbed the cashier, taking an un­
disclosed amount o f cash
En route to the scene. O ffice r
George Burke, observed a car, later
determined to be the suspect vehicle,
leav ing the area o f the robbery , at a
high rate o f speed Suspicious o f the
vehicle. O ffice r Burke follow ed the
car to the area o f NE 79th and Schuyler
Street, w here the d rive r fled from the
vehicle on fool W ith the assistance o f
a dditional covering officers, the area
was cordoned off. O fficers observ cd in
the suspect vehicle, the cash taken in
the robbery, gloves, a scarf and a
baseball cap that the suspect used
d u rin g the robbery. W ith the assis­
tance o f a canine o ffice r and his dog,
the suspect was tracked to the area o f
M adison H igh School, where the sus­
pect ran from the officers. The suspect
was eventually tackled by O fficers
K e vin W arren and M ik e Westerman
The suspect continued to struggle and
fig h t vv ith the officers but was eventu­
a lly subdued. O fficers W arren and
Westerman, as w ell as the suspect,
were a ll taken to local hospital to be
treated fo r m in o r in ju rie s sustained
d u rin g sen file. A ftc rb c in g treated, the
officers and the suspect, were released.
T h e su sp e ct, w h o was n o t
c a rr y in g a n y id e n tific a tio n and
re fu se d
to
id e n tify
h im s e lf,
was charged w ith Robbery in the first
degree and lodged at the justice Cen­
ter Jail The suspect, has tentatively
been id e n tified as, Joseph Dean M a t­
thew. date o f b irth 07-24-68, is being
held in lieu o f $50,000.00 bail. A r ­
raignm ent is scheduled fo r 2 00 pm
Monday. June 21. 199.7 at the Justice
Center. The investigation is continu­
ing.
Shooting Investigation
N E 6th D riv e A n d M a rin e D rive
On Sunday. June20.1993 at 11:50
p in . N o rth Precinct U n ifo rm O ffice r
responded to the phone booth, located
at N E 6th D rive and M arine D rive,
w here the victim s o f a shooting were
requesting assistance. Upon the a r­
riva l o f officers and medical person­
nel. they found G lcn d cll Scamstcr,
D O B 1 1-15-64. suffering from a gun­
shot wound to the rig h t buttocks. M a rk
A Mason, D O B 03-06-56, suffering
from gunshot wounds to the head and
left fool, and M ichael Mason. D O B
02-07-51. brother o f M a rk, who was
not injured Scamstcr and M a rk M a ­
son, were taken to Emanuel Hospital,
where Scamstcr was treated and re­
leased and Mason remained listed in
stable condition
O fficers also found Scamstcr’ s
car at the scene w hich had been struck
11 times by gunfire A lso in the ve­
hicle were sy ringes and alcohol. O f­
ficers attempted to question the v ic ­
tim s. w ho were not cooperating fu lly
w ith investigators, in an attempt to
determ ine what happened M ichael
Mason took officers near 1-205 and
NE M a rin e D rive, w hich is the scene
o f the shooting, where officers found
ni nc spent casings belongi ng to a semi­
autom atic weapon
A lth o u g h officers have few de­
tails, they believe the vic tim s became
involved in an altercation w ith three
to four subjects, w hich led up to the
shooting. Afterwards the v ictim s drove
to N E 6th D rive and M a rin e D rive
where they reported the incident. It is
unknow n w hat the victim s were doing
at location o f occurrence o r w hat the
argum ent was in regards to.
N o arrest have been made and
officers have no suspects. The in ve sti­
gation is continuing.
Toxicology Results Show A rm ed
(¡unm an Under Influence O f
Drugs
H idden Treasures A n tiq u e Store-
7104 SE Easter R oad
A ccording to Dr. Larry Lew m an,
State M edical E xam iner, the to x ic o l­
ogy results o f W illia m R ile y Wood
D OB 9-15-63,“ indicate that hc(W ood)
was under influence o f a h igh level o f
methamphetamine at the tim e he was
fatally shot.”
W ood, was fatally wounded, on
Monday. June 14, 1993, d u rin g a rob­
bery attem pt that went awry. The store
owner. Lawrence Thomas Freeman
D O B 9-25-55, o f the H idden Trea­
sures A ntique Store, 7104 SE Foster
Road, shot W ood after Wood con­
fronted Freeman w ith a gun. Freeman
was able to wrestle the gun away from
Wood and im m ediately shot Wood,
once in the chest.
A ccording to Dr. Larry Lewm an,
anautopsy conducted on Tuesday June
15, 1993 showed that W ood “ died
from a single gunshot w ound w h ich
entered through the chest (fro n t) and
passed through the heart, aorta, left
lung and exited out the back.
Juneteenth 93
Community Care
PGE Employees
Celebrated Juneteenth
E th n ic foods, m usic, dancing,
poetry readings, and historic display s
marked P ortland General E le ctric
Co. s Juneteenth Celebration. Friday,
June 18th. in the courtyard at Tw o
W o rld Trade Center
Sponsored by the company's A f­
rican-A m erican N etw ork, the event
comm emorated the signing o f the
Em ancipation Proclamation signed by
Abraham L in co ln more than 130years
ago
The firs t Juneteenth Celebration
was held June 19.1865, when General
Gordon Granger arrived in Galv eston,
Texas, and read a government order
freeing a ll slaves in cast Texas. The
E m ancipation Proclam ation as actu­
a lly signed two years p rio r on Jan. 1,
1863
ployces w ith a chance to learn about
and better understand different cu l­
tures.”
PG E’ s Juneteenth gave a ll em­
ployees an opportunity to sample a
variety o f e thnic foods, watch dancing
by the A frican-A m erican Ballet Danc­
ers, hear music, and listen to poetry
readings featuring w orks by Maya
Angelou Employees w ere also treated
to a n a rray o f di splays focusi ng p ri ma-
rily on A frica n -A m e rica n history and
culture
As an added element to the cel­
ebration, the com pany’s Asian A m eri-
can/Pacific Island N etw ork and H is­
panic Leadership Association prepared
and served foods popular in th e ir c u l­
tures. In addition, the tw o groups
hosted performances by the P ilip in o
“ Today, celebrations o f these (sic) A m erican Y outh Dance Group
events are held on a number o f d iffe r­ and M exican Dancer o f the B allet
ent dates throughout the South." say s F o lkló rico De W oodburn.
Juneteenth C o m m itte e C h a irm a n
A lth o u g h th is was the largest
Bobbye Brow n o f PG E’ s Human Re­ event that P G E ’ s A frica n -A m e rica n
sources Department. "B u t they all re­ N etw ork and other PGE host groups
volve around one historic achicvc- sponsor, addi tional activities and semi­
in cn t—the freedom o f A fric a n -A m e ri­ nars arc held throughout the year.
cans from slavery.”
Examples include involvem ent in the
“ T h crca rc s till areas in this coun- recent C inco dc M ayo celebration on
tr v th a t have n e v e r h e ard o f the w aterfront and sponsorship o f pro­
Juneteenth," says Brow n “ We hope fessional development and com m uni­
this celebration w ill prov ide our cm - cations seminars.
Garlington Center
Stay Clean Celebrated Juneteenth
Day
S ta y C lean h osted one o f th e c ity 's la rg e s t
J u n e te e n th c e le b ra tio n s . There w ere g u e s t
s p e a k e rs , bands, and lost o f good fo o d . This Is an
an n u al e v e n t p u t on by th e non-profit agency to
bring th e com m unity to g e th e r In unity.
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