Shooting victim identified, police still seek public help in probe of Oakridge violence

By DOUG BATES/Editor/The Herald — The victim of this week’s shooting in Oakridge was identified Thursday, and police agencies continued to seek the public’s help in investigating the violent predawn crime.

Jared Lee Moe, 31, of Oakridge remained hospitalized with undisclosed injuries from Wednesday morning’s flurry of gunfire in a normally quiet neighborhood bordering the town’s historic Uptown business district. Typically, police agencies do not release the names of crime victims whose assailants remain at large, as appears to be the case in Moe’s shooting.  His identity was confirmed unofficially Thursday morning by residents of the neighborhood.

Yellow police tape and evidence markers that surrounded a small house at 76448 Maple St. all day Wednesday had been removed as of Thursday morning. The only remaining evidence that this was a crime scene was broken car window glass that remained strewn at the intersection of Maple and Commercial streets.

The Oakridge Police Department, investigating the shooting with assistance from the Oregon State Police and Lane County Sheriff’s Office, offered no new information on the case Thursday. A day earlier Police Chief Kevin Martin issued a plea for public assistance.

“We ask that any witnesses or anyone with information specific to the investigation (to include residential/commercial video surveillance) please contact the Oakridge Police Department at 541-782-4232,” Martin said in a news release.

Still unclear, along with many other details of the case, is how many individuals were involved in the burst of gunfire, reported just before 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. Police have not indicated how many suspects are being sought or whether Moe is the only person believed to have been shot in the altercation.

Neighbors in a wide area, on both sides of the Union Pacific railroad tracks through Oakridge, reported hearing the multiple gunshots.

Moe had already been in the news recently after a police raid in Eugene. Police there arrested him on three outstanding warrants issued in Springfield: felon in possession of a restricted weapon, driving while suspended and failure to register as a sex offender.

The arrest occurred May 7 during a raid that was part of an investigation into a Eugene car dealer suspected of selling methamphetamine. Eugene police’s SWAT team and the street crimes unit were both on the scene as a search warrant was served at “Buy A Car” at 825 River Ave. in Eugene. The dealer suspected in the case was not found, but nine other people encountered at the location, including a woman and baby. Four, including Moe, were arrested on warrants unrelated to the case.