HOOD RIVER, Ore. — A Gresham man is behind bars after allegedly kidnapping an 89-year-old woman and burglarizing her home on May 10.
Around 1:40 p.m. that day, deputies responded to the Mid-Columbia Mobile Estates on Tucker Road in Hood River for reports of a burglary, the Hood River County Sheriff's Office said.
According to court documents, the suspect, 51-year-old Kevin McCallum, had forced his way into the victim's home, threatened the elderly victim with a taser and bound her to a chair with electrical tape. McCallum also appeared to have used mascara to draw a goatee on himself.
“It's one of those that shocks the conscience,” said Hood River Sheriff’s Sgt. Joel Ives. “Somebody of that age being preyed upon in that way is disturbing to anyone in the community.”
After the first burglary, investigators said McCallum broke into the home next door, which was unoccupied at the time. Court documents said McCallum knew the owners of the second home and that he had met their son in prison.
“From what I understand, somebody was on drugs,” said neighbor Dale Davis. “[McCallum] thought they had money, that's what he was here for… you just don't think about this, it's a community of older people.”
On Thursday, after a multi-agency investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service arrested McCallum in Gresham.
“We certainly wanted to get him into custody as soon as possible, especially since he wasn't local,” said Sgt. Ives.
McCallum was lodged in the Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facility on charges of kidnapping in the first degree, two counts of burglary in the first degree, coercion and menacing.
As for the victim, Davis said she’s doing as well as can be expected.
“She was pretty upset, pretty shook up,” said Davis. “I went over and gave her a hug and said I was sorry it happened to her.”