PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Stacy Rickerd and Jeremy Merchant, the Estacada couple found killed in the Mount Hood National Forest, were shot to death, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday.
Their deaths had already been ruled homicides but the manner in which they died had not previously been released.
The bodies of Rickerd, 42, and Merchant, 43 were found August 12 in an area near a gravel pit where people go to shoot guns about 15 miles east of Estacada, Sgt. Marcus Mendoza earlier told KOIN 6 News.
On Tuesday, Renee Rickerd told KOIN 6 News her sister Stacy and Jeremy were likely out in the area collecting spent shell casings and planned to recycle the metal, then use the money to “get their grandson something nice.”
When their bodies were found, their dog Talladega was nearby, unhurt.
The couple had been together since 1994. They loved the outdoors, camping, fishing, spending time with their families.
Renee Rickerd said she worries someone else could get hurt if their killer isn’t caught.
“You don’t know how the person is. You just never know,” she told KOIN 6 News. “No one else should go through — any family or anything — go through that. Senseless.”
Detectives with the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office told KOIN 6 News they are making some progress with the case but they still need the public’s help.
Anyone with any information regarding the ongoing investigation is asked to contact the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office at 503.723.4949 or to go online and reference CCSO case number 19-018794.