According to KTVZ, a Central Oregon drug investigation took a disturbing turn this week when police said it led them to a kidnapping case involving methamphetamine, firearms, a man tied to a tree, and an assault that ended with one of the victim’s fingers being amputated.
The details sound more like something pulled from an episode of The Sopranos than a police investigation unfolding around Redmond and Bend, but authorities said the case involved multiple agencies and ultimately led to three arrests.
The investigation involved the Redmond Police Department, the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement team, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the Central Oregon Major Incident Team.
Detectives with the Redmond Police Department Street Crimes Unit received information that 51-year-old Jeffrey Patton of Redmond was returning to Central Oregon from the Portland area.
Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies later stopped a vehicle driven by 57-year-old Thomas Dopp of Redmond, with Patton riding as a passenger.
According to police, a drug-detection dog alerted to the presence of controlled substances in the vehicle. Investigators obtained a search warrant and said they found a firearm along with more than two pounds of suspected methamphetamine.
Patton and Dopp were both taken to the Jefferson County Adult Jail and booked on drug possession, drug delivery and firearm charges.
But investigators said the case did not end with the drug seizure.
Detectives identified 41-year-old Efram Palafox of Bend as an associate of Patton while continuing the investigation. Around the same time, police were looking into the disappearance of an adult man who had last been seen late Aug. 11 at St. Charles Medical Center in Redmond.
Police said surveillance footage from the hospital showed Palafox leaving with the missing man. Investigators later determined the man had been forced to leave the hospital against his will.
The investigation then led authorities to an area southeast of Redmond in Deschutes County.
Police said the victim was taken there, tied to a tree and tattooed in a derogatory manner. During the assault, one of his fingers was amputated.
The victim was found on Aug. 12 walking near the Deschutes Pet Lodge with serious injuries. Emergency responders treated him before transporting him to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend.
According to police, the victim later provided information that was consistent with the ongoing investigation and identified Palafox as being involved in the assault and kidnapping.
Palafox was located near Northeast Butler Market Road and Northeast 27th Street in Bend and taken into custody without incident.
Police said he was found with a substantial amount of methamphetamine and an undisclosed amount of cash.
Investigators then executed a search warrant at a residence associated with Palafox on Powell Butte Highway.
According to the Redmond Police Department, officers recovered the victim’s missing finger, DNA evidence and a possible weapon used in the assault during the search.
Additional charges were filed following the search.
Palafox was booked into the Deschutes County Adult Jail on charges including first-degree kidnapping, first- and second-degree assault, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, cocaine possession and seven counts of firearm possession by a prohibited person.
The arrests followed a multi-agency investigation stretching across Deschutes and Jefferson counties.
What began as a drug investigation involving suspected methamphetamine and firearms quickly expanded into a far more serious case, with police saying they uncovered evidence of an abduction and violent assault that left a man badly injured.
The criminal charges remain pending in court.
Source: Redmond Police Department, with additional reporting from KTVZ, published Aug. 14, 2026.
