Third arrest made in murder of Gladstone beauty salon owner
PORTLAND, Ore. - A third person has been arrested in connection with an alleged murder-for-hire plot that left the wife of a former Gladstone police officer dead.
Jason Jay Jaynes, 32, is facing one count of attempted aggravated murder and two counts of criminal conspiracy of a felony. Bail has been set at $250,000.
Jaynes is the biological son of 54-year-old Susan Campbell, who is already in custody in connection with the case.
Also in custody is 50-year-old Lynn Edward Benton, a former police sergeant with the Gladstone Police Department.
The story began in May of 2011 when Benton's wife, Deborah Higbee-Benton, was found dead in her beauty salon. An autopsy found she had been shot, beaten and strangled.
Investigators believe Benton agreed to pay Campbell $2,000 to murder his wife. An indictment claims that Benton actually tried to hire Campbell and her son twice for the job - once in November 2010 and then again in April 2011.
Campbell, who was a caretaker for Benton's mother, was arrested days after the death and has remained in jail since then without bail.
Detectives interviewed Benton last year but he was not arrested until this week and now Campbell's son, Jaynes, has been added to the list of alleged conspirators.
Jaynes did, at one time, live in Gladstone but shortly after the homicide he moved to Seaside, where he has been living with an aunt. However, he was arrested this week during a traffic stop in Gladstone. His arraignment is scheduled for Friday.
Sources tell KATU that as part of an agreement with the district attorney, Campbell implicated her son in a previous plot to kill Higbee-Benton.
"She is cooperating fully," Campbell's lawyer said. "She has an agreement and the state expects her to live up to it, which she will do."
Benton had worked with the Gladstone Police Department for almost 25 years before being fired last year on unrelated matters. Police Chief Jim Pryde said Benton had viewed pornographic material on a work computer and fraudulently married a Brazilian immigrant in 1993 so the man could obtain citizenship.
Benton was born Lynne Irene Benton and underwent a female-to-male sex change operation in 2010, just before he married Higbee-Benton.
i have little doubt but that this "what-the-hell-were-they-thinking" story is going to become either the subject of a true crime book by the likes of Ann Rule, or a made-for-tv movie, or both.
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If it were to become a big screen movie, i believe Ethan and Joel Coen should write the screenplay and direct it, either as a drama in the vein of "Blood Simple" and "Fargo", or a comedy like "Raising Arizona". Or possibly John Waters might make the movie in the style of his "Serial Mom".
 @Michael L. if anyone does that movie, no one is more qualified that the Wachowskis.
are those chin nuts on that peckerhead. I hope he get used to that look.
@LostSoul Great comments for a Friday! He probably just got back from a date with Bruno and Lutz!
They should ship him down to spend time in jail with Jared Lee Loughner.
They could entertain each other with a smirk-a-thon.
 @Mikey Now *that* made me guffaw right out loud. Good one!
While the crime was wrong and the suspects if guilty are convicted then justice is served.........This makes me wonder why a person that was in law enforcement for 20+ years did not stop and think that in the end there would be arrests made.....If I were him I would have legally left the US and legally entered a non extradition treaty country and lived out my life and not have stayed here driving a bus.......None to bright
 @FreerideNOT and full of himself, apparently.
Why do these POS' always have smirks on their faces?
 @noneofyourbizzness Maybe the mugshot photographer is a comedian in his/her other job and uses the criminals for practice.
This guy got dropped on his head as his mother was giving birth while standing up drinking at some bar after shooting-up. In everything I had access to, this skel was not an active player - Mother, do you think they will like my picture??
@boned You are flowing pretty freely with privileged info. Are you deliberately trying to help force a mistrial?
A pile of psychopaths.
@whirledworld ....creepy too!
''.... in a previous plot to kill Higbee-Benton.'' Sad. Sounds like her murder was planned more than once, and still they botch it. Shot. Beat. Strangled. Poor Deborah.
I just want to know "why". Why not just divorce her? Or just walk away...but why screw up your already screwed up life?What had she done so wrong that she had to be murdered. And thius chicken POS couldn't even do it himself??? Too much of a coward? A "real" man would have...jus' sayin' :(
 @fracas I had a long discussion with a detective buddy about exactly your point and covered this on another thread. For some reason they are wired differently than most folks that would be happy to be let out of the cage of marriage. We have seen some of the most gruesome murders involving gay folks - let alone the macho butches all steroid-ed up as in this case. Hey, it is over my head and of course there are some horrific heterosexual murders, but most we saw were not even close the slice-and-dice stuff between pissed-off gay folk and you do not want to know...
So let met get this straight, Susan Campbell is hired by LBenton to murder Higbee for 2 grand?
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...and Campbell is able to talk her son into doing it?
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Jason Jay Jaynes aka Triple J...aka...J Cube...aka Cube...aka blockhead.
OMG! I'm SOOOO confused! LOL!
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Who else wants to smack that smile off his ugly, smug face? Jerk!
That pic of Jaynes reminds me of Jared Loughner...  and this case sounds more and more like an out-of-control soap opera..!   The horrific part of it is that it happened in real life... With this bunch, Deborah Higbee-Benton never had a chance...Â
Oh Lord, transgender, probably couldn't get it up or something...Egads, this is one hell of a case..It sounds like a case from hell.
 @lee986321 Actually, pretty straight forward - it has been the Tabloid Journalists on our mediums that have fowled it all up. Higbee did not want to be married to a 'man' and that was the end of her by a steroid-ed female/male cop that had to finish the killing gone bad while on duty...Â
 @lee986321 They have little hand pumps for that, Lee. You should check into them...um, I mean just as a matter of information and all.
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And yes, it is all so cornfusing.
 @Mikey  @lee986321 Why would anyone want to pump their hand up? lol.
 @Lips  @lee986321 LOL!! Heh heh heh...one never knows!!!
truth is stranger than fiction
 @Phuzz And Portland is weirder than truth!
This story gets sadder as it unfolds. I'm sure I will be angered to tears by the end of it. Prosecute to the fullest extent.
This episode sets transgender respectability back 50 years.
 @hankhandsome Awww, I don't think so... there are crazies and murdering psychopaths in every walk of life.
this person is smiling, he has a plan or is insane one of the 2.
 @lee986321 I think they got him on his way back from Washington where he had been preemptively celebrating the passage of their pot measure. Can't think of any other reason to look like the canary that ate the cat.
 @Mikey Not legal for another 30 days and of course the gubmint is going to spend millions of our tax dollars fighting this, but you knew that...
 @boned It's what they do best, boned!! It's what they do best!
Wonder what Jaynes is smirking about! They all should end up living on stale bread and water in prison.
A gene pool that is in obvious need of some chlorine.Â
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As far as Mr/Ms Benton.... I'm with 1812 down below. Put him in gen pop at the mens maximum security prison and justice will come calling.Â
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Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive!
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-Sir Walter Scott
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 @MarkKpic Why do you want to deceive Sir Walter Scott? :-P
Holy Cow, three arrests. He/she must have really wanted her dead. Wonder why.
 @drosen Why that hot Brazilian Cabana Boy, why else?
Maybe Lynne-Lynn thought it would be like Carnivà le every day!
Nothing like a romance with a little Sadistic Salsa on the side, no?
Why not just divorce her? I've never understood these people that think they can actually get away with murder.
 @Jamie Brazil is a mostly Catholic country.
Divorce ist verboten, but murder???
What's a little purgatory for true love?
Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-BA Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-BA Hey! Let's form a conga line!
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Lots of sickos out there, Jamie.
 @Jamie I'll answer both questions, Probably for insurance money.
 @lee986321  @Jamie Under PER's, Lynn Benton will receive no pension money if convicted and will receive nothing in regards to insurance money, thank GOD!!Â
 @lee986321  @Jamie money and property
 @lee986321  @Jamie ~  I wouldn't be a bit surprised, Lee... money and greed are usually mixed in there somewhere...Â
Swift justice will occur if Lynn Edward Benton, formerly Lynne Irene Benton, is placed in the general population. Everybody involved in this sordid mess should get the death penalty!
 @I812 I will have to ask my attorney buddy what side of the prison he/she/it will be placed. I understood from a friend of he/she/it that the final surgery was never actually done, but I could be wrong...
@boned My understanding is she completed the process to become a "man," has legally changed her name and gender, and will be placed in the male prison population just as any other male. The story seems to confirm this as it mentions the sex change operation occurring in 2010.
 @I812  @boned Even with the male cosmetic exterior, he still has the testosterone level of a female (no testes) and requires anabolic steroids to achieve the masculine appearance. Without the hormon treatments he will quickly lost strength and "manliness" and physically become a female with with facial hair in not too long. However, since this is Oregon, I'm sure they will allow him to keep taking steroids at the taxpayers expense.