Two arrested in kidnapping case

Two people were arrested on Friday in a kidnapping case that started with an incident at Sisters Mainline Station and ultimately spanned Deschutes and Jefferson counties.

According to Deschutes County Sheriff's Office Lt. Chad Davis, deputies were dispatched to the Sisters Mainline Station for a report of a kidnapping at 3:40 p.m. on January 27. Kiteara Westover, 23, and Damian Patteeuw, 23, both of Crooked River Ranch, reported they were victims of a kidnapping and had just been released by the suspects. The victims provided a suspect vehicle description of a 2002 gold Ford Expedition. The suspect vehicle was reported seen heading eastbound on Highway 20 from the area.

An Oregon State Police trooper located the suspect vehicle on Highway 20 in Tumalo, and with the assistance of deputies conducted a high-risk traffic stop on O.B. Riley Road near Hardy Lane. Jeremiah Degraw, 37, of Modesto, California, and Alisha Bryden, 36, of Crooked River Ranch, and Bryden's 9-year-old daughter were removed from the vehicle without incident.

The investigation determined that Bryden, Westover and Patteeuw all knew each other prior to this incident; they were all living together at 12581 SW Cinder Dr. in Crooked River Ranch, in Jefferson County. Degraw was unknown to Westover and Patteeuw.

On January 26 at approximately 9 p.m., Westover and Patteeuw were in their bedroom, which they rent from Bryden, when Bryden and Degraw allegedly entered their room uninvited and accused them of stealing from Bryden. Degraw began assaulting Westover with a leather sap (an impact weapon that is a leather sleeve filled with lead pellets). Law enforcement reports that Bryden and Degraw were also armed with handguns. Bryden grabbed Westover by the hair and dragged her from the room. Degraw then began hitting Patteeuw with the sap.

After Westover and Patteeuw were assaulted, their hands and feet were bound with plastic zip-ties and Bryden and Degraw allegedly continued to assault them for over an hour. Following the assault, Westover and Paateeuw were loaded into the Ford Expedition at gunpoint, where they were threatened with death several times. Bryden's nine-year-old daughter was present and witnessed these events.

Lt. Davis reports that "Westover and Patteeuw were driven in the vehicle, where they were terrorized and threatened to be killed if they did not provide re-payment for items they were accused of stealing from Bryden. Additionally, Degraw used a folding knife to cut off portions of Westover's hair to further threaten her. Westover and Patteeuw were ordered to contact friends and relatives to wire-order money for the re-payment."

Eventually, the suspects drove Westover and Patteeuw to Sisters, where they rented a room at Sisters Motor Lodge. Their zip ties were removed from their feet so they could walk into the room; their hands remained bound. According to police, the victims were warned not to flee or they would be harmed further.

They all stayed one night at Sisters Motor Lodge and the following morning they began to drive toward Eugene, until the suspects determined they had no tire chains and would be unable to cross the pass without them. At approximately 3:40 p.m. on Friday, January 27, Bryden and Degraw, unable to extract money from them, decided to release Westover and Patteeuw, Lt. Davis reports.

Westover and Patteeuw were allegedly ordered to go into the Sisters Mainline Station and create a scene, as though they were having an argument, so Bryden and Degraw could get away. Once inside the store, Patteeuw was able to call 911 and report they had been kidnapped. Westover and Patteeuw were contacted by deputies and later transported to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend by Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire medics for their injuries. Westover and Patteeuw were treated for non-life-threatening injuries and they were later released.

Detectives from the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office Detective Division conducted interviews with all of the mentioned parties and executed search warrants at the SW Cinder Drive address and Sisters Motor Lodge, where evidence of the crimes were located. Detectives from the Oregon State Police and the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team assisted in the investigation. Deputies from the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and OSP troopers assisted in the search of the S.W. Cinder Drive residence.

As a result of the investigation, Bryden and Degraw were arrested on charges of kidnapping, assault, coercion, menacing, unlawful use of a weapon and conspiracy and lodged at the Deschutes County Adult Jail, each with a bail of $710,000. Bryden's daughter was taken into protective custody by the Oregon Department of Human Services.

The Deschutes County Sheriff's Office is requesting any witnesses to this incident to contact the non-emergency dispatch number at 541-693-6911, to provide a statement.