EUGENE, Ore. — Police have arrested a Portland couple in the murder of a former Tigard High School student who was shot and killed in Eugene earlier this year.
Alex Gradin was a student at Lane Community College.
Gradin was shot and killed in the parking lot behind Taylor’s Bar and Grill on the University of Oregon campus just before 2 a.m. on May 4. He died at the scene.
After a nearly four-month investigation, Eugene police on Friday announced two arrests. Regis Derey Kindred, 30, and Kailee Von Foster, 29, are both charged with murder. The two are married and live in Portland.
Foster was arrested Thursday. Kindred was already in custody on unrelated charges at the Multnomah County Jail.
According to Eugene police, the shooting was intentional, but Gradin was not specifically targeted in the shooting. Shots were fired into a crowd of people behind the popular campus bar.
Detective Jed McGuire said the violence was the result of gang-related acts, but Gradin was not involved in any way, and there was no evidence to show that he knew the suspects before they pulled the trigger.
"Alex had zero affiliation with any gang,” McGuire said. "He died as a result of walking through that parking lot for no particular reason."
“Alex did nothing wrong during any part of his night, and he ends up dead.”
Investigators were looking for a person of interest. On Saturday, police said they had contacted the person of interest and that he was cooperating with investigators. Police believed the man may have crucial information about the shooting.
Gradin played football at Tigard High School. His friends and family said he was a kind and funny person who was loved by all.
His family released the following statement through Eugene police:
“Alex was loved by family and friends in Eugene, Tigard, and in his birth country of Kenya. His family requests members of the public to provide information on any additional persons of interest, to assist in the ongoing investigation. Please respect the family’s privacy during this difficult time.”