On July 17, 2022 at approximately 5:40 PM the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office received numerous 911 calls about gunshots in the area of Shoshone Road and Baker Road. Upon arrival deputies learned that two people had encountered a cougar in the area and had fired numerous shots at the cougar. According to one of the subjects, the cougar had been observed killing a deer in the area of Baker Rd. earlier in the morning. While they were later walking on Baker Rd. near the area of the observed deer kill, they observed the cougar in the bushes approximately 10 feet from them. The cougar was acting aggressive toward them, so they both shot at the cougar.
The cougar was later observed hiding under a porch in a resident’s back yard. The cougar then left southbound and was seen going through yards in the neighborhood before deputies lost sight of it.
Based on safety concerns for those in the neighborhood and the large number of people in the area along the Deschutes River, the Sheriff’s Office contacted an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife tracker in order to locate the cougar. DCSO deputies along with the Oregon State Police and the ODFW tracker located the cougar within close proximity to another residence. The cougar was ultimately euthanized.
While on scene deputies learned that a nearby house was struck by a ricochet bullet from the subjects shooting at the cougar. Based on the damage caused to the house, both subjects were issued citations to appear for Criminal Mischief II.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office is a full service agency that oversees the adult jail, provides patrol, criminal investigations, civil process and search and rescue operations. Special units include SWAT, Marine Patrol, ATV Patrol, Forest Patrol, along with six K9 teams. Founded in 1916 and today led by your duly elected Sheriff L. Shane Nelson, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office serves over 200,000 residents in Deschutes County. The agency has 259 authorized and funded personnel, which includes 193 sworn employees who provide services to the 3,055 square miles of Deschutes County.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up