Canby Herald Online

Canby High graduate's body found in Central Oregon

• Published: 11/17/2009 4:14:16 PM
• Last Updated: 11/17/2009 6:13:41 PM

Courtesy of KTVZ
Jeff Clites Johnson

TERREBONNE – The body of a missing Wilsonville man was found Monday in the Crooked River Gorge in Deschutes County, two days after his vehicle was discovered in the area.

No foul play was suspected in the death of Jeff Clites Johnson, 22, a 2006 graduate of Canby High School, according to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office.

Searchers found his body about 2 p.m. Monday below the Peter Skene Ogden State Scenic Viewpoint about nine miles north of Redmond.

He had been the subject of a search by nearly 40 volunteers since Saturday when a sheriff’s deputy found his car on Wimp Way outside Terrebonne.

When deputies sought to locate and contact Johnson, they discovered his family had filed a missing person’s report with the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office.

DCSO Sgt. Scott Shelton told Oregon news Web site KTVZ.com that a team of mountain rescuers had to rappel down a sheer cliff, with swift-water teams working the Crooked River and the north shore and teams on foot covering the south, to reach the search area, which was down a 200- to 350-foot drop.

The investigation is continuing. DCSO detectives are attempting to obtain more information regarding Johnson’s activities prior to his body being recovered.

Peter Skene Ogden State Scenic Viewpoint, where Johnson's body was found


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N.W. Wimp Way, where Johnson's vehicle was found

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