The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office is seeking any witnesses or information that occurred Wednesday morning near Yoakum Road on Interstate 84.
According the sheriff’s office, around 5:15 a.m., a man reported that he parked his blue Chevy one-ton pickup along the westbound lanes of Interstate 84 near the Yoakum Road exit to remove tumble weeds from his vehicle. While under his truck, he saw a dark colored sedan pull in behind him. When he stood up, an unknown man punched him in the mouth and then began to kick him as he was on the ground.
The victim reported that the attacker appeared to be a white male who had a large tattoo of a word or words on his forearm. The victim said he and the suspect then tussled to get to the driver side door of his pickup. The victim said he punched the suspect in the throat and then jumped into his pickup and sped away as the suspect threw rocks at him.
The victim thinks the man was trying to steal his pickup because the suspect’s car smelled like it overheated. The victim also believes the suspect was a passenger from the suspect’s car, but could not get any further descriptions because the headlights of the suspect’s vehicle were blinding him.
The sheriff’s office is seeking information from anyone who was in the area at the time, and who may have seen these vehicles. Contact the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office at 541-966-3600.
