Police on lookout for father-son duo.

Byline: The Register-Guard

A father and son who police say have stolen thousands of dollars from businesses in Western Oregon with a hit-and-run style of check kiting have been active in Eugene and police are seeking public help to end their sprees.

The father, Douglas Clancy Roche, 53, is wanted by several agencies on fraud charges, and by police in Spokane on an escape charge after he was arrested and absconded from electronic surveillance. Roche also uses the alias Ronald Keith Evans. He is about 5 feet, 10 inches and weighs 230 pounds.

The son, Steven Roche, 19, uses the alias Steven Ryan Evans. His height and weight are not known, although he resembles his father in build, police said. He was seen in a silver 1991 Ford Taurus with Oregon license plate XTB 218 last month in the Oregon City area.

The two don't ordinarily work together, although police believe they were together last weekend at Valley River Center returning merchandise for cash refunds.

The pair use identical methods and avoid arrest by staying on the move, police said. They open bank accounts with minimal deposits, order boxes of checks and then write hundreds of checks with insufficient funds in their accounts. They may then return merchandise for cash.

"These two are the most prolific check writers that we have. They've just managed to move fast enough to stay out of custody," Eugene police Detective Steve Williams said. "We're just trying to lock these guys down somewhere to keep them from doing it again."

Anyone with information regarding Douglas or Steven Roche may phone Williams at 682-2682.