Bend man arrested; five guns, drugs seized

Bend police contacted and arrested a man in a car in the Shopko parking lot Saturday evening, finding three handguns the convicted felon is not allowed to have, officers said. Two hours later, Central Oregon’s SWAT team raided his northeast Bend home and found two sawed-off shotguns, methamphetamine and a restricted knife, police said.

Officers contacted William Paden Hill, 23, in the car around 6:25 p.m., having developed information he recently was in possession of guns and was selling methamphetamine, said Sgt. Nick Parker.

Three handguns were found during a search of the car, two with their serial numbers filed off, Parker said.

Around 8:20 p.m., members of the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team (CERT) executed a search warrant at Hill’s unoccupied home at 2020 NE Holliday Avenue, the sergeant said.

That search turned up two sawed-off shotguns, meth and a restricted knife, Parker said, adding that one of the shotguns was found to be inoperable due to the alteration.

Hill was lodged at the Deschutes County Jail on four counts of possession of weapons by certain felons and one count each of felon in possession of a restricted weapon, methamphetamine possession and frequenting a place where drugs are used, Parker said. Jail records show his total bail was $13,500.

In 2009, then-19-year-old Hill was arrested on charges related to a 16-year-old Bend girl’s overdose on a new designer drug, “Sunshine,” local investigators had never heard of. He also was accused of sexually abusing the girl and giving her cocaine and marijuana.

At the time, Hill already had been convicted of drunken driving, domestic assault and minor in possession of alcohol, and was on probation for cocaine possession.