Detectives Rush Too Late to Save Murder-Linked Minivan from Scrapyard
Police discovered that a maroon minivan believed to hold evidence in Kenny Fandrich’s murder was sent to a scrap yard, but arrived after the vehicle had already been crushed.
Detective Devin Rigo of the Hillsboro Police Department learned that a maroon minivan, suspected to be the primary crime scene in the murder of pipe fitter Kenny Fandrich, had been taken to a scrap yard north of Portland. Surveillance from Intel’s parking garage captured the suspect, later identified as Dr. Steven Milner, spray-painting cameras and later using the van to abduct and kill Fandrich. Investigators traced the van’s VIN from a Home Depot parking lot and received an alert from the Oregon Department of Transportation when it was towed off I-5.
The vehicle was sold to a scrap metal company, and when Rigo arrived, he saw a video of the van being shredded, missing the chance to collect forensic evidence. The case hinges on “burner cars” used by Milner to evade detection, and the loss of the van complicates the prosecution’s evidence chain. The story was featured in a recent broadcast about the murder investigation.
Why it matters
Losing the minivan may deprive investigators of crucial forensic evidence in a high-profile murder case.
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