Former Clackamas County Commissioner Faces New Identity Theft Charges After DOJ Says She May Have Fled the Country
A Clackamas County grand jury returned a new 19-count indictment against ex-Clackamas County Commissioner Melissa Fireside on Thursday, adding charges related to opening multiple credit accounts and obtaining a federal pandemic relief loan using the stolen identity of her 65-year-old mother.
More Charges Against Ex-Clackamas County Commissioner Melissa Fireside
Melissa Fireside was elected to the Clackamas County Board of Commissioners in 2024, after winning 51.74% of the vote. Following the first indictment, she resigned as a county commissioner in March 2025.
The Oregon Department of Justice received information after that indictment that she may have fled the country with her 9-year-old son from where she was previously living, in a converted classroom in a former school building in Morrow County owned by her son’s paternal grandparents.
Fireside is already facing charges on a separate indictment returned in February 2025, accusing her of identity theft, forgery, theft, and computer crime in connection with allegations that she financially exploited an 83-year-old man.
- 2024 : Fireside is elected Clackamas County commissioner.
- Feb 2025 : First indictment is returned.
- Mar 2025 : Fireside resigns from the county board.
- June 25 2026 : Grand jury returns 19 new felony charges.
- Now : Prosecutors say Fireside remains missing.
The charges followed a months-long investigation by the Lake Oswego Police Department and the Oregon Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Division.
In the first indictment, prosecutors charged Fireside with first-degree aggravated theft, first-degree theft, two counts of identity theft, two counts of computer crime, and two counts of first-degree forgery.
The case relates to allegations that she accessed a computer network without authorization and forged signatures.
In Thursday’s indictment, it is alleged that Fireside used the personal information of her mother, Gertrude Fireside, who didn’t discover the alleged thefts until last August.
The indictment indicates that Fireside allegedly fraudulently obtained a U.S. Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, a NetCredit account, and credit cards from Discover and Bank of America.
The indictment lists 19 felony charges: 11 identity theft counts, 4 theft-by-deception counts, 3 first-degree forgery counts, and 1 first-degree theft count.