Oregon rock climber charged over mass killing plot at Smith Rock mountaineering event

A 39-year-old rock climber is facing a slate of attempted murder charges over an alleged plot to kill random people at a Smith Rock climbing event this weekend.

The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office arrested Samson Zebturiah Garner on Thursday and took him to the county jail on several charges each of attempted murder of multiple victims, attempted first degree assault, attempted second degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon.

Law enforcement recovered a Beretta 9mm handgun, a Sig Sauer 9mm handgun and an AR-15 from Garner when he was arrested. The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office seized those weapons under an extreme risk protection order during the arrest, meaning the courts will take those guns away for at least a year.

Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels said investigators had recovered journal entries with Garner’s belongings that indicated he was not planning to target specific people, but had a “generalized anger.” Court charging documents list potential victims in the case as “spectator” and “belayer.”

Gunnels said there was not a clear motive for the alleged plot.

Garner is a Portland resident who has worked as an information technology professional in the past and had an active membership in the Mazamas, a mountaineering education nonprofit, according to Executive Director Rebekah Phillips. She said while Garner’s membership was current, his involvement with the group had been “limited since 2018.”