Just another day on duty for Coos County Patrol Deputies at Eel Creek Campground

Coos County Sheriff's Office

October 16th, 2023, around 9:48 pm;

Responding to a report made to Coos County Dispatch for a suspicious vehicle and trespassing, Deputy Z. Smith encountered Jeffery Ross siphoning gasoline from a stolen Ford pick-up truck. Running the license plates revealed a mismatch with the vehicle, and further investigation confirmed that the truck had been reported stolen from the city of Reedsport.

Ross was apprehended and detained in the back of Deputy Z. Smith's patrol vehicle. But the story doesn't end there. As Deputy Z. Smith was on scene, another vehicle pulled up, driven by Fredrick Thom, who had a suspended driving status and active warrants for his arrest out of Douglas County. Thom was promptly taken into custody. 

Deputies M. R. Smith and Sattler arrived to assist and discovered another occupant in the vehicle who was found to be in possession of suspected Fentanyl. The narcotics were seized for evidence, and Thom was turned over to our partners with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office for transport to their county jail, where he was booked on his active warrant. Deputy Z. Smith also issued him a traffic citation for driving while suspended and driving uninsured. 

Ross is being referred to the Coos County District Attorney’s Office for Possession of a Stolen Vehicle. Both he and the other occupant were released on scene.