Bend man seriously injured in motorcycle crash, found the next morning

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A 20-year-old Bend man reported missing Saturday morning after failing to go to work or return home was found laying in the brush off a Forest Service road southeast of Bend, where he’d been overnight since his motorcycle crashed, authorities said Monday.

Bend police were advised Saturday morning of a possible missing person, identified as Tavion Linett, who had last been seen around 10 p.m. when he left friends in the Millican Valley to return home on his 2003 Kawasaki motorcycle, according to Deschutes County sheriff’s Sgt. Nathan Garibay, the county’s emergency services manager.

Police traveled to the area of U.S. Highway 20 and Forest Service Road 23 (Spencer Wells Road) to begin searching for Linett, soon joined by a sheriff’s Search and Rescue deputy, Garibay said.

Around 9:30 a.m., a family friend found Linett off FS Road 23, just south of Highway 20. The officers and deputy headed to the scene, along with Bend Fire & Rescue medics.

They learned Linett had only gone about a half-mile since leaving his friends late Friday night when he failed to negotiate a dog-leg curve and ran off the road, suffering serious injuries that left him lying in the brush all night.

Due to the nature of his injuries, an AirLink helicopter flew Linett to St. Charles Bend, where he was listed in fair condition late Monday.

Officers remained on scene and assisted in the crash investigation, Garibay said, adding that “alcohol does not appear to be a factor” in the crash.

A GoFundMe page has been created to help Linett with medical expenses at https://www.gofundme.com/f/tavion-linett.