Oregon mayor arrested, accused of shooting at family during Halloween road rage incident

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The mayor of a small city in northern Oregon was arrested after sheriff's officials say he fired multiple rounds at a vehicle carrying a family of four during a road rage altercation Monday evening.

Officers booked Rufus Mayor Dowen Jones into the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility on multiple charges, including attempted murder and four counts of first-degree attempted assault.

Just before 8:45 p.m. on Halloween, a family was traveling south on Highway 281 when they noticed an SUV in front of them that was moving erratically, the Hood River County Sheriff's Office said in a news release. The driver of the family's vehicle told investigators that the SUV abruptly pulled over, which seemed concerning. As they slowed down to attempt to get a description of the car, Jones allegedly got out of the car and fired multiple shots from a handgun at the passing family, causing damage to the vehicle.

There were two adults and two children – aged 8 and 5 – inside the vehicle when the shooting happened, officials said. No one was hurt.

On Tuesday, investigators said they located the vehicle involved in the shooting and then identified Jones as the shooter.

Rufus, home to less than 270 people, is a small city east of Portland along the Oregon-Washington border. Jones' term as mayor is set to expire at the end of the year, according to the government website.

City officials told Nexstar they had no comment at this time.