Man arrested, accused of stealing thousands from incarcerated father

PORTLAND, Ore. – Detectives from Columbia County arrested a Springfield, Ore. man who they said stole nearly $33,000 from his incarcerated father.

Freddie K. Sandusky, 22, was arrested at the Portland Airport while he was preparing to board a flight to Hawaii Tuesday.

Sandusky had been on the run for two weeks, according to Columbia County Sheriff Jeff Dickerson, and had spent or gambled away around 40 percent of the stolen money. Investigators recovered $19,000.

Dickerson said the case began Aug. 14 when deputies responded to a domestic violence call.

Sandusky’s father, 59-year-old Dennis Newman, was arrested on assault charges and for being a felon in possession of a weapon. His son, Freddie Sandusky, was the victim in the case.

When deputies learned Newman had a large amount of money at his house, they took him back to get it, but saw that the money and Sandusky were gone.

A Columbia County detective acted on a tip that Sandusky might be headed to Hawaii and arrested him at the airport after he checked in for his flight on Aug. 28.

“This is a case where our deputies had compassion on the man they had just arrested and acted in his interest, even though the victim himself had previously committed a crime,” said Dickerson. “The good police work on the part of our people to find the suspect and recover some of the money is noteworthy, even when the victim is also a suspect in another matter.”