The Linn County Sheriff’s Office has idenified the deceased pilot found in a recent plane crash that occurred April 20 on Mt. Tom, about 10 miles southwest of Crawfordsville.
On April 30 the Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office advised the sheriff’s office that through dental records, that they had positively identified the deceased as Lee Cheshire Leslie III, 41, of Vancouver, Wash. ((more))
The wreckage of the Piper PA-28 has been removed from scene and the FAA is still conducting their investigation as to the cause of the crash.
The Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team along with air support from the Oregon Army National Guard located the crashed airplane two weeks ago on Mt. Tom, in southern Linn County approximately nine miles east of Harrisburg, north of Shotgun Creek.
The crash site is located on BLM property that is heavily wooded with rough terrain.
The Sheriff’s Office learned of a missing airplane from the Cres-well Airport on Wednesday, April 20, and Search and Rescue members have been searching the Mt. Tom area due to the plane’s last known radar contact.
Just after noon on Friday, April 24, a helicopter from the Oregon Army National Guard spotted a crashed plane.
Upon relaying their coordinates to Linn County Search and Rescue ground support, SAR members found the airplane. Leslie’s body was found in the wreckage.
Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board officials gathered in Crawfordsville Sunday morning, April 26, on their way to investigate the crash.