Linn County Sheriff Michelle Duncan reports that on December 24,2025, at 10:33 p.m., the Linn County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center received a 911 call for a vehicle versus pedestrian crash at the Riverfront Park in Harrisburg. The caller reported the suspect vehicle had fled the scene and the caller indicated they had also left the scene. Deputies arrived at the park within six minutes of the call and did not see anyone. Deputies saw fresh tire track in the grass on the west side of the park, near the Willamette River.
Deputies searched the riverbank and saw a male, down a steep embankment, lying partially in the Willamette River. The male was not conscious or breathing so deputies began CPR until the Harrisburg Fire Department arrived on scene and took over lifesaving effort, which were unsuccessful. The deceased male was later identified as Russell Slonecker, 71, of Harrisburg.
Through crime scene processing, review of surveillance footage, and interviews, investigators were able to determine that Bobby Joe Wagoner, 48, of Harrisburg, was in a confrontation with Slonecker at the park. At one point, Wagoner struck Slonecker with his vehicle. After hitting Slonecker, Wagoner then parked his vehicle and approached Slonecker on foot, continuing the confrontation. Wagoner then kicked Slonecker, who then fell down a steep embankment where he was later found by deputies deceased. Wagoner fled the scene.
Bobby Joe Wagoner was located by deputies at a location in the 500 block of South 5th Street in Harrisburg on December 25, 2025, at 8:07 a.m. He was taken into custody without incident. Wagoner was taken to the Samaritan Albany General Hospital for a medical evaluation prior to being lodged in the Linn County Jail for Murder in the Second Degree.
This investigation is ongoing and anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact Detective Scott Tennant at (541) 967-3950.