Portland police aided by K-9, plane arrest fleeing suspect in Bend man’s execution-style killing
PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A Gresham woman wanted for her alleged role in the execution-style killing of a Bend man last fall tried to flee Portland police in a stolen pickup truck Thursday evening but was found and arrested by officers, helped by a K-9 team and police airplane.
Shortly after 6 p.m., an East Precinct officer spotted a suspicious person in a pickup truck near Northeast Glisan Street and 102nd Avenue, officers said. Through further observation, the officer developed probable cause to stop the driver, but she eluded and the officer did not pursue.
The Portland Police Bureau’s Air Support Unit joined and followed the pickup as its driver tried to get away, jumped out and ran on Southeast 111th Street near Stark Street, officers said.
Police set up containment around the area and used a K-9 team and the plane to track and arrest the woman, Kasandra Kitchens, 26, in a nearby backyard.
Kitchens was lodged in the Multnomah County Detention Center on outstanding murder warrants and new charges of vehicle theft and attempting to elude police.
Gresham police investigators said last month they believe Andrew Sherell, 35, was lured from his Bend home with Kitchens’ help in a series of events that led to last September’s killing. Detectives said Sherell was selling illegal drugs, splitting his time between Central Oregon and the Portland area. They said he was the target of an abduction and abduction-style killing due to a drug debt.
Police had already arrested four other suspects they say were involved in the killing of Sherrell, whose body was found off Northeast Portal Way in Gresham on Sept. 24. His arms had been bound and he had been shot once in the head.
