CODE Detectives Arrest Bend Man Second Time This Week for Theft and Identity Theft

Bend (News released from Central Oregon Drug Enforcement)-Released by: CODE Sergeant Kent Vander Kamp 

On February 16th, 2024, at approximately 3:15 PM, the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team concluded a same-day investigation by arresting Wyatt James Froome, age 30, of Bend. 

Earlier this week, CODE Detectives arrested Wyatt Froome during an alleged drug sale transaction. During his earlier arrest, detectives located $750 worth of Lego toy sets allegedly stolen from the Bend Target store earlier the same day by Froome and his accomplice. 

Today, CODE Detectives were monitoring public social media marketplaces for criminal activity when they noticed Mr. Froome was online and was offering sell hundreds of dollars worth of new Lego sets at deep discount. Detectives contacted Froome with an offer to purchase the Legos on display. He and the detective made a deal, and a meeting was arranged to purchase the Lego sets. 

Later, Froome arrived at the Bend Outlet Mall when uniformed Bend Police Officers contacted him while he had the stolen property he agreed to sell to the online detective. 

It is alleged Froome “pre-sells” the Lego sets on social media platforms. Once an interested party contacts him, Froome allegedly “fulfills the order” by stealing the same Lego set from a local retailer. 

During these investigations, CODE Detectives charged Froome with four additional Bend area thefts totaling over $3,000 of stolen property. 

According to area retail store security officers, Legos are a hot item due to their popularity and relative cost from retail markets. Legos are virtually untraceable, without serial numbers, and quickly sold on the black market or to unsuspecting buyers on social media. 

Wyatt Froome was lodged in the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Jail with the following criminal charges.

• Theft I, ORS 164.055 (Four Counts)
• Theft II, ORS 164.045 (Three Counts)
• Aggravated Identity Theft, ORS 165.803
• Fraudulent Use of Credit Card, ORS 165.055

CONTACT FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:   Sgt. Kent Vander Kamp, 541-550-4869 or kentv@deschutes.org 

The Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE) team is a multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program and the following Central Oregon law enforcement agencies:  Bend Police Department, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Redmond Police Department,  Prineville Police Department, Crook County Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Madras Police Department, Oregon State Police, Sunriver Police Department, Black Butte Police Department, United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Warm Springs Tribal Police Department, Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson County District Attorney’s, and the Oregon National Guard.

The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement task forces to disrupt or dismantle local, multi-state, and international drug trafficking organizations.

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