On the evening of April 25th, 2022, a Lane County Sheriff’s deputy assigned to the Creswell contract responded to a dispute in the 700 block of N. Mill Street in Creswell. A witness contacted the deputy in the driveway and they rushed into the house. The deputy observed a male covered by a tarp with a cord tied tightly around his neck. There was also severe trauma to both sides of the male’s head. The deputy quickly cut the cord from around the victim’s neck and called for an ambulance. Detectives responded to investigate. They determined Steven Daniel Wages, 59, was responsible for the injuries to the victim. Wages was located the next day almost 4 hours away in Brookings. He was arrested after a short vehicle pursuit by Brookings Police officers. On 01/25/2024, Wages was found guilty on two counts of Assault in the First Degree and one count of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree. On 03/25/2024, Wages was sentenced to 230 months in the Oregon Department of Corrections. Considering the particular brutality of this crime and the lengthy criminal history of Wages, the judge denied Wages the possibility of early parole or early release through programs. The Lane County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the work of our Creswell deputies, detectives, Brookings Police, and the Lane County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance on this case.
