The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office reports that one person is dead and a 19-year-old suspect is in police custody following a shooting outside the Fred Meyer in Wood Village on Tuesday evening.
Kenneth William Nevills Jr. is being held in the Multnomah County Detention Center on accusations of second-degree murder and unauthorized use of a firearm.
At 7:30 p.m., deputies, paramedics, and Gresham Police responded to a reported shooting near NE Park Lane and NE 223rd Avenue. They discovered an unresponsive victim in the parking lot of the Fred Meyer. The victim, Cameron Michael Quiring, 24, died at the scene.
The sheriff’s office said deputies apprehended Nevills Jr. within 10 minutes of the shooting near NE 202nd Avenue and NE Glisan Street.
Quiring and Nevills Jr. know each other, and deputies are looking into a possible conflict between the two, according to the sheriff’s office.
According to court filings, witnesses told authorities that the shooting occurred in the Fred Meyer pharmacy drive-through and was the result of an argument over Nevills Jr.’s claims that Quiring was beating the suspect’s sister.
One witness reported seeing Nevills Jr. make a U-turn in the parking lot to block Quiring’s car in the drive-thru. Nevills Jr. then allegedly approached Quiring’s car, yelled at him to come out, and shot him four to five times.
A deputy stopped a car that matched the description of the suspect’s shortly after the killing and reported that Nevills Jr. informed him, “He was beating my sister.” What have I done? “I’m only 19,” he said after surrendering the weapon that was apparently in his pocket.
A package of ammunition was visible inside the car during the traffic check, according to court filings.
Nevills Jr.’s sister told deputies that she was dating Quiring and had told her brother and mother earlier on Tuesday that Quiring was abusive.
She went on to explain that Nevills Jr. assured her that he would protect her and drove her to a medical appointment, where Quiring arrived.
Quiring apparently drove Nevills Jr.’s sister to the pharmacy just before the incident occurred.
Elizabeth Lay, an employee at the Wood Village Fred Meyer, told FOX 12 that she was on her lunch break when the incident occurred.
“I was on lunch and we were coming down the stairs and some coworker came up and she goes, ‘There’s a shooting,'” Lay replied. “We weren’t sure if it was a random shooting, so we went upstairs again and hid in the lunch room… And when we discovered out he had died, we were quite afraid.”
Lay said she frequently works late into the evening and has never felt unsafe.
She also stated that the Fred Meyer managers did an excellent job speaking with employees and assisting police in their investigation on the night of the incident.
Nevills Jr. appeared in Multnomah County Circuit Court on Wednesday afternoon and pleaded not guilty.
He’s been ordered to be jailed without bail.
The 19-year-old’s next court date is scheduled on June 18.
Anyone with information on the event is asked to contact the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office at 503-823-3333 and reference case number 26-25252.
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