Husband of missing Oregon hiker arrested for murder, body found same day

The husband of a 61-year-old Oregon woman who police say disappeared while hiking in Mount Hood National Forest just over a week ago has been arrested, authorities said Friday.

According to Clackamas County Jail records, Michel Fournier has been charged with second-degree murder, but bond has not been set.

The 71-year-old was arrested Friday – the same day the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office announced a person was found dead near East Highway 26 and East Miller Road in Clackamas County.

Investigators are still working to identify the body and determine the cause and manner of death.

Fournier’s wife, Susan Lane-Fournier, was reported missing on Nov. 22 after she failed to show up for work.

Her disappearance came just weeks after Lane-Fournier began divorce proceedings against her husband of 12 years, local television station KGW reported.

A petition for dissolution of marriage filed Oct. 31 in Clackamas County Circuit Court states, “Irreconcilable differences between the parties have resulted in the irremediable breakdown of their marriage.”

Police believe Lane-Fournier, who also goes by the name “Phoenix,” was with her two large Malinois mixes in the area of ​​the Green Canyon Way Trail south of Werden, one of the many communities in the Villages at Mount Hood. went hiking.

On Nov. 23, her white 1992 Ford F-250 pickup was spotted parked on E. Salmon River Road near the Green Canyon Way Trail – a discovery that prompted the sheriff’s office to mobilize volunteer teams should help in the search for her.

A massive search and rescue operation, which also involved drone teams and K9 aerial detection and towing units, was called off on Tuesday after more than “800 hours of searching” yielded no results.

“Due to weather conditions and the likelihood of survival, the decision was made to suspend operations after all four volunteer search teams returned from the field,” officials said.