Former Salem cop flees Oregon, arrested in Florida

Statesman Journal

A former Salem police officer who was facing burglary, theft and meth charges in Oregon was arrested Tuesday in Florida by U.S. Marshals.

After searching for about a week, investigators found Seth Thayres, 31, on the side of the road in Clearwater about 1:30 p.m. He had been staying at various hotels in the Tampa Bay area, according to supervisory deputy U.S. Marshal Eric Wahlstrom.

Thayres is being held in Pinellas County Jail and will be taken back to Oregon in a few weeks. No additional charges have been filed from Florida, Wahlstrom said.

Thayres worked as a patrol officer with the Salem Police Department since 2014. He was placed on administrative leave Oct. 9 and was awaiting the outcome of a fitness-for-duty evaluation, according to spokesperson Lt. Treven Upkes.

He was arrested Feb. 6 — along with alleged accomplice James Cardenas, 35 — while off duty in Portland after he was allegedly caught with methamphetamine and stolen computer equipment worth $30,000.

He resigned from the police department following his arrest.

Upkes declined to say what prompted Thayres' evaluation. But in a social media post, Thayres said he was declared unfit for duty by a psychologist, following an armed confrontation with a robbery suspect in March 2017.

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He was charged with an additional 17 counts of computer, theft and meth possession charges in Multnomah County, according to court records.

On March 26, Thayres pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree theft in Clackamas County after selling stolen property from a software company and a youth crisis nonprofit. He was sentenced to 18 months probation and 20 days in jail.

Multnomah County and Portland Police officials issued a warrant on April 1, after Thayres did not appear at his arraignment.

Virginia Barreda is the Breaking News Reporter with the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at 503-399-6657 or at vbarreda@statesmanjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.