Sisters man accused of stealing several city, school and construction vehicles around the region
Barney Lerten
(Update: Adding previous guilty plea, sentence)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A Sisters man arrested in December for stealing a front loader from a construction site and ramming a family member’s SUV has been arrested again in the theft of several city, school and construction vehicles around the region, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said Wednesday.
Blake Mogan, 33, a transient from Sisters, faces charges stolen vehicle investigations since December. The cases involved heavy equipment and other vehicles taken from locations throughout Sisters, Redmond, and Bend, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Jason Carr said..
As KTVZ News reported in December, deputies first encountered Mogan on Dec. 9, when he was arrested in Redmond operating a construction loader taken from a nearby job site.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office shared these photos of the various stolen vehicles
“Following that incident, law enforcement agencies in the region began investigating additional thefts with similar methods and patterns,” Carr said.
On Tuesday, Feb. 17, deputies found an abandoned and heavily damaged Sisters School District Suburban on Buckhorn Road. Carr said evidence recovered from the SUV, along with onboard video footage, identified Mogan as the person who illegally broke into the school district’s transportation building and stole the suburban.
On Monday of this week, deputies responded to the report of a stolen City of Sisters F-450 crane truck. Deputies coordinated with other agencies and found the truck on a forest road northwest of Sisters.
Mogan was contacted and taken into custody without incident, Carr said. During the investigation, deputies also recovered a stolen utility trailer associated with the case.
During interviews with investigators, Carr said Mogan admitted to several vehicle thefts, including prior incidents under investigation by the Sheriff’s Office, the Bend Police Department and the Black Butte Police Department.
Mogan was arrested and lodged at the Deschutes County Jail on numerous charges, including:
Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle
Burglary in the Second Degree
Theft in the First Degree
Criminal Mischief
Criminal Trespass
Driving While Suspended
Mogan also faces a probation violation detainer related to previous convictions, and was being held without bail Wednesday at the jail in Bend, records showed.
These cases remain under investigation, Carr said, and more charges from partner agencies may follow.
The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office thanked the Sisters School District, City of Sisters Public Works, Black Butte Police Department and the Bend Police Department for their continued partnership throughout the investigations.
Court records show Mogan pleaded guilty in late January to unauthorized use of a vehicle. He was sentenced earlier this month to a 10-day jail term, 18 months probation and a one-year driver’s license suspension.
Conditions imposed at the time included substance abuse evaluation, no drug use or possession and no contact with the excavation firm or other victims. He also was ordered to pay $5,170 in restitution.
Mogan was arraigned Tuesday on the nine new charges, six of them felonies, and is due back in court March 3 for arraignment on an expected grand jury indictment.