Man arrested for multiple child sex abuse crimes
By Terry Murry on Friday, April 2nd, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – Pendleton police have served an arrest warrant on Richard James Sheldon, 74, of Pendleton for a number of sex crimes against a child. The criminal acts are alleged to have occurred between 2017 and 2020. Police launched an investigation on Feb. 25, 2020.
“Detectives with the Pendleton Police Department applied for and executed several search warrants related to this case, which resulted in the seizure of evidence supporting the allegations,” Chief Chuck Byram stated in a news release. “Investigations of this nature are complex and take a substantial amount of time and effort to piece together the information and evidence to ensure that offenders are held accountable in a court of law.”
Byram said that the investigation was also hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced key criminal justice facilities to slow down or close up entirely. Detectives persisted and on March 24, a Umatilla County grand jury issued a 19-count indictment of Sheldon.
He was arrested Thursday at his Southeast 11th Street residence. Charges against him include two counts of first-degree sex abuse, three counts of second-degree sodomy, four counts of second-degree sex abuse, six counts of third-degree sodomy, and four counts of third-degree sex abuse. His bail is set at $2,355,000.
