An Oregon county commissioner has been charged with several felonies for allegedly stealing from an elderly victim in a major fraud scheme. Melissa Fireside, 43, a Democrat, was arraigned on charges Wednesday. She is a newly elected Clackamas County Commissioner representing District One.
Fireside faces eight felony charges including first-degree theft, first-degree aggravated theft, two counts of identity theft, two counts of computer crimes, and two counts of first-degree forgery, according to court filings. The commissioner has been accused of taking financial advantage of an 83-year-old man while accessing a computer network. She allegedly forged the victim’s name on documents to steal his funds, per the indictment. The total stolen amounted to tens of thousands of dollars over a series of at least eight separate criminal incidents.
Fireside is being prosecuted by the Oregon Department of Justice. She has also been accused of forging the signature of Democrat state Rep. April Dobson, who represents Happy Valley, to steal the victim’s funds. A Clackamas County judge ordered Fireside to have no contact with both the victim and Dobson during Wednesday’s hearing. She was not remanded to custody.
According to the indictment, Fireside “unlawfully and knowingly accessed a computer for the purpose of committing theft of money.” This included forging or altering several promissory notes: one for $29,000 and another for $30,000. The first recorded criminal act occurred on September 16, 2024, according to court documents.
Hellbound and Down 