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47 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, March 23, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend March 22, 2005 Kidnap-robbery trial to start today By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune Two Medford men charged in the 2002 kidnapping and robbery of an Applegate gun collector are set to face a jury today. Matthew Steven Phillips, 30, and 25-year-old Jeffrey Truman Shepherd were posing as federal agents when they tied up and blindfolded the Applegate man, forcing him to hand over guns, military surplus items, knives and camping equipment on April 9, 2002, police said. They allegedly prodded the victim with shotgun barrels before binding his hands and tying a bag tied over his head. He was found, still bound, stumbling along a remote road. The case stumped local detectives until agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration in July 2002 discovered firearms and other items stolen from the victim at the Medford home of 45-year-old mortgage broker Kirby Lee Barker. Barker’s garage yielded a stash of 31 rifles, 17 pistols, eight boxes of ammunition, night-vision goggles, a bulletproof vest and an incendiary grenade, court documents say. Agents obtained their warrant after buying a pound of methamphetamine in May 2002 from Barker and Shepherd. Investigators found marijuana, hashish, hash oil and hallucinogenic mushrooms at Barker’s Ford Drive home, according to court documents. Evidence in the federal raid led to a Jackson County grand jury’s indictment of Barker, Phillips and Shepherd in April 2003 for the Applegate man’s kidnapping. All three were charged with first-degree robbery and first- and second-degree kidnapping. Advertisement Instead of standing trial, Barker pleaded guilty in Jackson County Circuit Court in May to the kidnapping and robbery charges but has yet to hear his sentence. The crimes carry mandatory prison terms ranging from seven years and six months to five years and 10 months. Phillips, who lives in the 100 block of Kensington Square, spent four days in jail and has remained free on bail since April 14, 2003. Barker and Shepherd are in jail on federal drug convictions. Both pleaded guilty last year in U.S. District Court to delivering methamphetamine. Shepherd was sentenced to 11 years and three months in federal prison on the drug charge and Barker was ordered to serve seven years and three months. The Circuit Court trial for Phillips and Shepherd is scheduled to run through Thursday. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Advertisement s