Forest Grove killings were premeditated, began as domestic violence, investigators say

Investigators believe the quintuple homicide outside Forest Grove over the weekend started as a case of domestic violence that spawned multiple killings, they said at a press conference Tuesday.

Phone records from Mary Kimsey, 85, showed she texted a friend about a fight between her grandchild, Stella Jade Kimsey, 26, and Benjamin Parker, Stella’s boyfriend. The conversation occurred just hours before the 36-year-old Parker is alleged to have killed Stella Kimsey, Mary Kimsey, Stella’s mother Rowan Kimsey, and Stella’s friends Linsey Haraldsen and Alvin Chu.

“Mary said Stella and Mr. Parker got into a horrible fight sometime during either Thursday evening or overnight into the early hours of Friday morning, and Stella told him he had to leave,” lead detective Mark Povolny said.

The details come just days after the victims were discovered on the rural Washington County property. A neighbor reportedly saw the flames from their home early Saturday morning, called 911 and ran to help fight the fire. While responding to the fire around 5 a.m., Forest Grove Fire & Rescue discovered human remains and alerted law enforcement.

Parker reportedly confessed to the killings in a phone call to his mother around 9 p.m. Saturday, investigators said.

“His mother shared that during the phone call he made to her on Saturday night, her son confessed to this crime. He said he had been planning this for a while and that it was premeditated,” Povolny said.

Authorities later pinged his phone to Enumclaw, Washington, where local officers found him in a pickup truck registered to Rowan Kimsey, dead by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Investigators said they were told Parker had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and that they discovered “mental health related prescription bottles” with his name on them. They said it’s currently unclear if Parker was taking them.

It’s also not yet known whether Parker legally obtained the .22 caliber handgun that investigators said he used to shoot each victim and, later, himself. Povolny said a firearms trace is currently underway.

At least four of the victims had multiple gunshot wounds.

Stella Kimsey and Parker began dating sometime in 2025, according to investigators. But if their relationship had been tumultuous in the past, neither of them escalated their concerns to law enforcement.

Neither appear to have filed for restraining orders nor had they called 911. Povolny said the only emergency call to the property on record occurred in January, when one of Parker’s parents called for a routine welfare check after not hearing from him.

Similarly, there are no records of so-called “red flag laws” — when a person’s guns are taken away by law enforcement over safety concerns raised by housemates, family members or law enforcement — being used on Parker.

But investigators said that evidence points to Kimsey’s family members, like Mary, being aware that Parker could “get very upset.”

Investigators point to Mary Kimsey’s text messages as evidence that Stella Kimsey attempted to break up with Parker around either late Thursday night or Friday morning; and that Haraldsen was called around that time — until the phone line dropped.

“Linsey couldn’t get Stella on the phone again, so she called up to the property to talk to Stella’s mom, Rowan,” Povolny said.

What followed appears to be a tragic cycle of violence, investigators described. Rowan Kimsey, who lived on the property but not in the main building, walked over to check on her child. But she never called Haraldsen back.

“Rowan did not call Linsey back, so Linsey then went up to the property,” Povolny said.

Then Haraldsen went radio silent, too. Mary Kimsey then, according to investigators, picked up Haraldsen’s partner Chu and drove over.

Around this time, investigators said, Parker also fatally shot two cats and two dogs, and a third cat was later euthanized due to its injuries.

Before he left the scene, authorities said Parker set multiple fires, which ultimately led first responders there Saturday morning. Parker later told his mother he “passed some of the first responding fire trucks” before heading toward north.

A statement attributed to the Kimsey family, and read aloud at the press conference, described their lost relatives as passionate and caring people.

“They all adored animals and being out in nature. And above all, each other, and their family,” the statement read. Haraldsen, the family said, was like a sister to Stella Jade Kimsey.

Advocates for domestic violence survivors spoke at the press conference to urge awareness of the issue, which they said continues to be a major factor in violent crimes in Washington County.

Amy Babcock, executive director of the Domestic Violence Resource Center, said leaving an abusive relationship can be extraordinarily difficult.

“One of the most dangerous times for a survivor can be when they are preparing to leave, or attempt to leave, an abusive relationship,” Babcock said.

Rowan Kimsey was a Portland-based tattoo artist. According to social media, Haraldsen was enrolled in a Portland beauty school.

A family member, who requested to remain anonymous due to the high-profile nature of the case, remembered Stella to OPB as “super sweet and sensitive” and Rowan as artistic and peaceful. They were also remembered as animal lovers.

“It makes the violence of their death somehow so much worse because they lived a quiet, peaceful existence out there and presumably welcomed this person [Parker] into their lives with love,” the family member said.

Forest Grove officials issued a statement late Tuesday mourning the victims.

“My heart goes out to the families and friends of the victims during this incredibly difficult time. Forest Grove is a tight-knit community, and I cannot imagine the pain and heartbreak they are experiencing,” wrote Mayor Malynda Wenzl.