Bastendorff Beach Shooting
News release from Coos Co. District Attorney R. Paul Frasier. At approximately 1:00 AM, the Coos County Sheriff’s Office received several 911 calls of multiple gun shots at Bastendorf Beach. Upon arrival deputies found at least five vehicles that had been shot. In one vehicle located in the parking lot at the south jetty, the officers found a white male adult that was deceased. He appears to have been shot while he was sleeping. He has been identified but we are not releasing his identity at this time. The person suspected of doing the shooting has been identified as 34 year old Dillard resident Zachary Levi Brimhall. Mr. Brimhall was found dead in his vehicle from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. It appears that Mr. Brimhall, as he was driving on the road by Bastendorf Beach, fired multiple shots from inside his vehicle. Multiple firearms were located in the vehicle. There is no known connection between the victim and Mr. Brimhall. At this point we have no information as to Mr. Brimhall’s motive. We are in the process of locating his friends, associates and relatives. We have been unable to locate Mr. Brimhall’s father. He is Ray Brimhall, age 58. Anyone who knows where Ray Brimhall is located is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office. The Coos County Major Crime Team has been activated and is on scene. Anyone with information about this situation is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office.
Bastendorff Shooting Victim Identified
Second news release from Coos Co. District Attorney R. Paul Frasier. The victim of the homicide at Bastendorf Beach has been identified as 43 year old Walker, Michigan resident David Jesse Hortman. Mr. Hortman is a representative of a RV supply company. He had been in Oregon for a show where he was an exhibitor on behalf of his company. He had extended his stay in Oregon to take a week of vacation to see the Oregon Coast. He had parked his vehicle near the south jetty for the night and appeared to have been asleep at the time of the shooting. As officers were processing the suspect’s vehicle, the police found what appeared to be bomb making materials. As a precaution, the officers stopped working on the vehicle and called for the Oregon State Police Bomb squad to come to Bastendorf Beach. We have reason to believe that the suspect, Zachary Brimhall, has caused harm to his father, Ray Brimhall. The vehicle of Ray Brimhall has been located in a rural area of Coos County. Officers have not approached the vehicle due to concerns that the car may have explosives inside of it. We are not releasing the location of that vehicle at this time. The Coos County Sheriff’s Office is the lead agency in this case. Officers from the Oregon State Police, Coos Bay Police, Myrtle Point Police, Coquille Tribal Police, Confederated Tribal Police, two teams from the Oregon State Police bomb squad, the Coos County Medical Examiner and myself have responded to assist in this investigation. Again, anyone with information about this matter is encouraged to contact the Coos County Sheriff’s Office.
Second Bastendorff Beach Shooting Victim
Third news release from Coos Co. District Attorney R. Paul Frasier. We can confirm at this time there is a second victim that has died as the result of the shootings that occurred early today. The second victim has been identified as 58 year old William Raymond (Ray) Brimhall (resident of Dillard). He is the father of Zachary Brimhall. It appears that Ray Brimhall was shot multiple times with a firearm. Mr. Ray Brimhall was found near his vehicle on Middle Creek Access Road, approximately 16 miles from the intersection of that road with Fairview-McKinley Road. The location is approximately 28 miles to the east of Coquille and is approximately 45-50 miles from Bastendorff Beach. Both the vehicle of Ray Brimhall and his son were processed by teams from the Oregon State Police Bomb Squad. No explosive devices or materials were found at the scene of the death of Ray Brimhall. In the suspect’s vehicle (Zachary Brimhall) several “seal bombs” were found along with materials that could be used to make an improvised explosive device. The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact the Coos County Sheriff’s Office.