Good police work nabs alleged thief and sex offender in Parkrose Heights

But, see why police do need your help with this case – and whey they ask you to heed their warning, when it comes to securing your residence before you turn in for the evening …

Last August, Knott Park was filled with people celebrating National Night Out Against Crime; thanks to an alert police officer, one suspected criminal was apprehended within a block of this park. East Portland News file photo

Story and photo by David F. Ashton
It was “just good police work” that took a man off the streets who is now charged with burglary and sex crimes in the Parkrose Heights Neighborhood.

That comment is what Sgt. Mike Geiger of the Portland Police Bureau Sex Crimes Unit told us, about the January 12 arrest of 34-year-old Demetrius Payton – charged with one count of Burglary in the First Degree, and one count of Unlawful Sexual Penetration in the First Degree.

“What broke this case was K-9 Unit Officer Jeff Dorn ‘paying attention’ while on duty,” Geiger explained. “Dorn kept in mind the nature and location of a crime event we were investigating, and the suspected individual’s physical description, while on patrol.”

Dorn thought about it, and then called Detective Todd Prosser in the bureau’s Sex Crimes unit. Soon, Geiger said, the victim was able to make a positive identification of the suspect, and police arrested Payton near Knott Park, in the area of NE 117th Avenue and Sacramento Street.

Police has charged this man, 34-year-old Demetrius Payton, with the crimes of Burglary and Unlawful Sexual Penetration. Have you seen him around your neighborhood?

“Now, we’re asking for the help of citizens to determine if there are other victims,” Geiger said. “The suspect was stopped in a red Land Rover, but Payton is also associated with a red Ford Escort. Investigators are asking anyone who may have seen Payton in the area of the 4200 Block of NE 125th Avenue to please call us.”

If you can help with this, or related, cases, you are asked to call Detective Todd Prosser at (503) 823-9230.

Additionally, Geiger suggested that many “crimes of opportunity” can be nipped in the bud if people simply make sure all of their windows, sliding glass patio doors, and doors, are all securely locked.

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