Salem hairdresser sentenced to eight years in prison for trafficking meth near South Salem High School

A Marion County Circuit Court judge sentenced a Salem man to eight years in prison three months after a police search of his home turned up drugs and ballistic vests, including one stolen from his vehicle. 'State of a policeman.

Wilson “Gene” Voorhis, 43, pleaded guilty Friday, June 21, in Marion County Circuit Court to attempted sale of methamphetamine near a school, possession of body armor as a felon and unlawful possession of methamphetamine, according to court records.

Voorhis was also sentenced to three years of post-prison supervision.

The arrest of Voorhis, a hairstylist by trade who worked at a downtown Salem salon, came after neighbors suspected drug dealing at a home on Southeast Rural Avenue. In February, they reported concerns to police that a man living in the home was selling methamphetamine to students at South Salem High School across the street, according to police affidavits used in the search the House.

Neighbors said after the search that police told them the house was a clubhouse for the Gypsy Jokers, which federal prosecutors described as a violent outlaw motorcycle gang.

On March 12, Salem police surrounded the house and asked Voorhis to come out for 45 minutes. After police broke down a window, he came out and was arrested.

A minor was present during the standoff with police, according to an indictment.

Police then searched his house and detached garage. Items seized included an Oregon State Police ballistic vest with a cloth police badge, stolen from a police officer's vehicle in Salem last October.

“We located a false wall behind a built-in bookshelf in the living room,” according to an affidavit from Det. Andrew Parsons of the Salem Police Department. He is assigned to the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force working in the Salem area.

“Detectives removed the fake wall and located a digital safe. Inside the false wall, detectives found a digital scale, packaging materials, a large storage bag containing methamphetamine residue, and ammunition,” the affidavit states.

Investigators found methamphetamine, fentanyl and heroin in the home. They also seized a Taser, tools and street signs, all of which were stolen, Salem police said at the time.

Voorhis has arrests dating back 20 years, including convictions in 2006, 2009 and 2017 for being a felon in possession of a weapon.

Police searched the Rural Avenue home in August 2022 as part of an earlier investigation. They found methamphetamine, cocaine and five guns, according to a police affidavit.

In a plea agreement in June 2023, Voorhis admitted to possessing a firearm, resulting in a new conviction for illegal possession of a weapon. He also admitted to threatening a woman with a crowbar and attempting to sell methamphetamine in the school area.

He then agreed that if he committed another crime, he would be jailed for eight years for those previous charges.

As part of a plea deal reached after the March 2024 case, he agreed to serve prison time concurrently for the recent and past charges.

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Contact journalist Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.

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