A 23-year-old Lebanon man has been arrested on arson charges in connection with the Champion Mill fire in February.
Owen Daniel Mercier, 23, was arrested Nov. 8 and charged with second-degree arson, first-degree criminal mischief and second-degree burglary and criminal trespass. He was lodged in Linn County Jail.
The two-alarm fire on Feb. 25 destroyed an abandoned building at the former Champion Mill site at 3133 Burdell Blvd. The structure was approximately 51,000 square feet in size, and firefighter efforts were hampered by both snowy conditions and a limited water supply.
The building began to collapse less than five minutes after fire crews arrived, at 8:13 p.m., and continued to collapse over the next 30 minutes until it was completely on the ground.
Fire crews brought the blaze under control after two hours.
Eugene man arrested for sexual abuse
A 23-year-old Eugene man was arrested Nov. 1 for sexual abuse in Lebanon.
Joshua Taylor Moore was charged with one count of attempted first-degree sexual abuse and three counts of third-degree sexual abuse as the result of an investigation that stemmed from a report that Moore had inappropriate contact with a minor female and a minor male who reside in Lebanon on Oct. 25, according to a police report.
Both minors were known to Moore and were under the age of 16, according to police.
This was the first and only contact that Lebanon Police Department has had with Moore, according to police. There did not appear to be any additional victims.
Moore was taken into custody at his Eugene residence and lodged at Linn County Jail.
The investigation remains open, and anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Chad Christenson at (541) 258-4324.
Man arrested after waving gun
Lebanon Police arrested a 38-year-old man for disorderly conduct recently after a caller had reported an armed male talking to himself at a business.
Police responded to the report at 12:12 p.m. on Nov. 3 in the 1900 block of S. Main Street, near Safeway.
When officers arrived, they saw a male waving a handgun around and placing it against the back of his head, according to a police report. As a precaution, two local businesses were locked down.
The male, Jerald Chasteen, complied with orders and was taken into custody without further incident. Police seized the handgun and found it to be a BB gun.
Chasteen was charged with disorderly conduct and transported to Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital for evaluation.
Lebanon police have had prior contacts over several years with Chasteen. None appeared to result from a disturbance involving a weapon.
No one was injured in the incident.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Sgt. John Trahan at (541) 258-4321.