2021 CCSO Year In Review - Flipbook - Page 17
Investigations
Tracking down the
‘Moto Bandit’
Spring 2021
In the spring of 2021, a burglar embarked on a crime spree
throughout Clackamas County and neighboring areas.
In the early-morning hours, the masked and helmeted “Moto
Bandit” broke into local bars and restaurants; he then attempted
to break into ATM machines at many of these establishments using an angle grinder, before fleeing on a Harley-Davidson Street
Glide motorcycle. The Moto Bandit was also caught on video
patronizing at least one victim establishment beforehand.
Resolution: The Sheriff’s Office released surveillance video
of the Moto Bandit in several April 2021 burglaries, generating
a flood of tips from the public. These tips helped investigators
identify 34-year-old Dusty Dow Baker as the prime suspect.
On July 1, 2021, Sheriff’s Office investigators and Portland
Police Bureau officers located Baker and took him into custody
in Portland. Since that arrest, Sheriff’s Office detectives have
helped other agencies investigate Baker in similar cases in other
jurisdictions.
Baker’s trial for his alleged Clackamas County crimes is
scheduled for December 2022.
Burglary call leads to
recovery of stolen items
from multiple states
April-May 2021
While investigating an April 2021 burglary in which jewelry and
other items were stolen from a home, a CCSO detective identified
a likely suspect: James David Piel, who had been in touch with
the victim via Facebook Marketplace and had learned the victim
was out of town.
On May 10, detectives secured arrest and search warrants
against James Piel on charges of Burglary in the First Degree,
Aggravated Theft in the First Degree, Criminal Mischief in the
First Degree and Computer Crime. At the time Mr. Piel was
in a motor home in a casino parking lot in Tehama County,
California. CCSO detectives traveled to California and teamed
up with Tehama County Sheriff’s Office detectives to contact Piel
and arrest him.
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C C SO 2 0 2 1 Yea r in R e v iew
Child Abuse Team arrests
registered sex offender in
child-predator sting
October 2021
In October 2021, registered sex offender Matthew David Nice
drove from Washington County to Clackamas County to
engage in sexual activity with someone he believed was a
15-year-old girl.
Nice had, in fact, been chatting with a Child Abuse Team
detective engaged in a sting operation to locate child predators.
The detective, posing as a child, had responded to a post Nice
had left on an anonymous messaging app.
Upon arriving at the arranged meeting point, Nice was instead
met by Clackamas County detectives, who took him into custody.
Resolution: Matthew Nice pled guilty to Online Sexual
Corruption of a Child – First Degree and was sentenced to
60 days in jail and 60 months of probation.
Investigations
2021 STATS
261
crimes against children
cases investigated
63
property and financial crimes
cases investigated
87
violent crimes against
persons cases investigated
68,504
items stored in
Property Room
A search of Piel’s motor home revealed a large amount of
stolen watches and jewelry, stolen from multiple victims in
multiple states, as well as items related to identity theft.
Resolution: James David Piel pled guilty in Clackamas
County to first-degree Burglary and was sentenced to 34 months
in prison. Additional charges are pending in Washington State.
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