On February 20, 2021, at about 6:15 am, deputies found 36-year-old Richard Allen Mann of Logsden deceased alongside the road near Government Hill Road in Siletz, Oregon. The Medical Examiner determined Mann died from gunfire, and investigators described evidence suggesting foul play.

The Lincoln County Major Crime Team handled the investigation with assistance from Oregon State Police Criminal Investigation Unit and Forensics, Toledo, Newport and Lincoln City police, and the Lincoln County District Attorney’s Office. Search warrants executed on February 23, 2021, at two residences on Tolowa Court — roughly a half mile from where Mann’s body was found — yielded a vehicle and other evidence.

Investigators interviewed multiple people and had sought 23-year-old Donovan Eugene Carey-Bennett of Siletz as a witness. On the evening of March 2, 2021, 27-year-old Gavin Whitehawk Epperson of Siletz was arrested and booked on charges including second-degree murder and related conspiracy and assault counts; Carey-Bennett was arrested and booked on conspiracy and assault charges. Authorities have not released specific details about what led up to Mann’s killing.

If anyone knew Richard Mann, his movements that morning, or has information about the events near Government Hill Road, please share what is known.