Bend shooting victim, father speak; suspects in court

Two men shot and seriously wounded during a weekend street fight in northwest Bend were recovering Monday at St. Charles Bend, while two men charged in the case — one with five counts of attempted murder — made their first court appearance.

Blake Blevins, 32, of Bend, and family members contacted NewsChannel 21 and said he’s now walking and eating, having been shot in the lower back (top of the buttock) with a bullet that went through his body and almost emerged on the front of his leg, near the knee.

Blevins’ father, Charles Blevins sat down with NewsChannel 21 to provide an update. He said his son is in a lot of pain, but fortunately the gunshot went through his lower back, missed his spine and barely missed his femoral artery.

Charles Blevins said it’s a phone call parents dread getting in the middle of the night: Your child is shot.

“It’s just shock — you know, ‘What?’ My main thing was get there as fast as I could,” Blevins said.

He said his son works as a security guard for night clubs in downtown Bend. He was with a group of friends that had DJ’d at the Summit Saloon that night and were walking to a friend’s house on Newport Avenue.

According to the father, a group of men outside a house off Newport instigated an argument with the other group walking through the area.

Blake Blevins said he has a positive outlook and was thankful a woman on the scene (who we talked to, Darcie Wilson) was there, talking to him and preventing a seizure that instead happened after he got to the hospital.

“I had a grand mal seizure, bit my tongue,” Blevins said. He said his friend, the other shooting victim, Erik Menezes, 31, of California, was shot in the abdomen and initially was in more serious condition but is now faring better.

Blevins said his situation became more worrisome when doctors had found a sharp fragment of the bullet near his femoral artery.

Charles Blevins said he’s just grateful and surprised no one got hurt.

“It stirs up, how did any of them make it? You know, rapid-fire weapon like that. They could’ve gotten hit, and done a lot of damage,” he said. “They’re very lucky boys. Glad for that. But, crazy that there is that type in Bend. I mean, Bend is growing, with it comes a lot of stuff. And that’s one of them.”

Blevins and his family have set up a GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/2hrwdthw to help with the medical and recovery costs. More information can be found on his Facebook page, they said.

Shooting suspect Walker Henneke, 23, of Bend, was arraigned Monday afternoon before Deschutes County Circuit Court Michael Adler, who set bail at $1 million and, if released, ordered him to have no contact with the victims, as well as no weapons and no alcohol.

Philip True, 27, also of Bend, also was arraigned and is being held without bail on a probation violation. he also is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and disorderly conduct.

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Earlier story:

A Bend man accused of opening fire with an AK-47 assault rifle during a street fight early Saturday, wounding two men, one critically, was arrested late last year in Washington state for firing a gun out of a pickup truck, online records show.

Moses Lake, Wash. police said Walker Henneke, 23, was a passenger in a truck in which the driver, Matthew Campbell, 35, of Moses Lake, struck a parked pickup. The driver was given a ticket for DUI and hit and run, while Henneke issued a ticket for unlawful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle.

iFiber One News quoted police as saying Henneke admitted to firing a gun from the pickup as they were driving. Police said spent shell casings were found inside their pickup.

An argument turned into a fight that led to gunfire on a northwest Bend street early Saturday when police said Henneke went to his house, retrieved an AK-47 assault rifle and opened fire, wounding two other men, one critically.

Henneke was jailed on five counts of attempted murder in the assault, which brought out Central Oregon’s SWAT team, prompted the use of tear gas and closed neighborhood streets for 13 hours.

The two shooting victims, identified as Blake Blevins, 32, of Bend, and California resident Erik Menezes, 31, were among five people walking north along Northwest 15 th Street near Newport Avenue when the encounter began around 2:40 a.m., said Lt. Clint Burleigh.

He later confirmed that Menezes had been in critical condition earlier in the day, though he had no update on either victim and St. Charles Bend officials said they could not release any information, citing patient privacy laws.

Henneke was at the home at 1473 Newport Avenue, along with roommates Philip True, 27, and Maxwell Haldeman, 25, Burleigh said.

The argument escalated into a physical dispute in the middle of the street near Henneke’s home, the lieutenant said, adding that it’s not believed either group had known each other previously.

Police said Walker went back into his home and retrieved a gun, later identified as an AK-47 assault rifle, returned outside and fired several rounds in the direction of those involved in the fight. Burleigh said the number of rounds fired was being withheld due to the continued investigation.

Police, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies and Oregon State Police rushed to the scene and quickly learned from witnesses that the suspects were associated with the home on Newport Avenue.

Bend Fire and Rescue medics responded and treated the two men, each of whom suffered single gunshot wounds to their lower extremities and/or torso and were taken to the hospital, Burleigh said.

Many were awakened by the shots and some quickly realized it wasn’t just thunder, fireworks, backfires or anything else.

“The sound — I thought, Was that thunder?’ It was bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang,” one woman recalled. “I counted eight, I think.. And it shook the house, and woke me up straight out of bed. I was like, ‘OK, that’s not thunder. I sure hope that I hear a siren coming soon.”

And she did.

“I grew up here, and this is my old haunt,” she said. “This is where I’ve spent my childhood. It’s very, very concerning to have this kind of thing happen in your neighborhood.”

The Central Oregon Emergency Response Team was called out to handle the arrests. CERT used negotiators and “chemical irritant gas” to get the suspects to come out of the house, Burleigh said. True came out before the tear gas was deployed and the other two men afterward. Burleigh said they were taken into custody without further incident.

Neighbors closest to the house were contacted and “given options to keep themselves safe,” Burleigh said.

The Central Oregon Major Incident Team conducted several search warrants related to the investigation, including one at the home where the three men lived. Burleigh said detectives found that Walker had tried to hide the AK-47 by tossing it over the fence, where it was found in the backyard of the neighboring home to the east.

The arrests and investigation closed stretches of Newport and Milwaukie avenues for about 13 hours, until about 4:30 p.m.

Walker was lodged at the Deschutes County Jail on five counts of attempted murder, eight counts of unlawful use of a weapon, five counts of recklessly endangering, one count of tampering with evidence, two counts of first-degree assault and three counts of first-degree attempted assault. His bail totaled $2.55 million

True was held without bail on a probation violation, as well as on charges of felon in possession of a firearm and disorderly conduct. Haldeman was issued a court citation for disorderly conduct, Burleigh said.

One resident in the area told NewsChannel 21, “At 2:45 I woke up to what sounded like an automatic weapon. Since then, cops everywhere.”

Others told NewsChannel 21 on Facebook that area residents were warned one or more possibly armed suspects might be in the house and to stay clear of the area. They reported hearing repeated police loudspeaker calls for whoever was inside to come out.

Throughout the day, Newport Avenue was closed between College Way and 14 th Street, and Milwaukie Avenue was closed between 14 th and 15 th streets.

Asked about residents’ reports on KTVZ’s Facebook page of use of a robotic device in the home, Burleigh confirmed that a robot was used to help search the home — and also that its battery died.