Allyson Joy Watterson body found
© Washington County Sheriff's OfficeAllyson Joy Watterson
About six months after Allyson Watterson was reported missing, the Washington County Sheriff's Office said it believes the 20-year-old's body had been found Saturday afternoon near North Plains.

The sheriff's office said a property owner in an unincorporated area near North Plains, where Watterson was originally reporting missing, discovered the remains while clearing brush. Based on the location of the remains and evidence found at the scene, detectives suspect the remains are Watterson's.

The area in which the remains were found is sprawling farm land with large pieces of property. The body was found several hundred yards off the main road, and the sheriff's office said they're planning on bringing the county Department of Land Use and Transportation to the scene to help with clearing some of the landscape.

"We're actually having them in and trim back some areas because the brush is just so thick," said Deputy Shannon Wilde of the Washington County Sheriff's Office. "It's not easily navigated. Some of the bushes back in there are blackberry bushes that are bigger than houses."

The initial investigation into the 20-year-old's disappearance was fraught with a changing timeline and inconsistent reports. Officials say there was 30-hour delay between the time Watterson was last seen and the time she was reported missing back in December.

Her boyfriend's father told deputies that his son, Benjamin Garland, and Watterson had been on a hike together before losing each other. Watterson's mom, Misty Watterson, told reporters that her daughter and Garland had been in North Plains to visit a friend when their car broke down.

The sheriff's office said at the time it had no evidence to support either claim. Officials said that was still the case Sunday, adding that they hadn't yet collected enough evidence at the scene to say whether they suspect foul play.

Deputies suspended the search for Watterson in late December, but it was briefly resumed back in January.

Officials discovered items belonging to Watterson in North Plains back in March, but did not specify what exactly what was found.

Deputies arrested Watterson's boyfriend, Garland, the day after Watterson was reported missing on charges unrelated to her disappearance. He was sentenced to three years in prison in April.
Benjamin Hunter Garland. muder suspect oregon watterson
Benjamin Hunter Garland also has outstanding warrants for a felony drug possession charge as well as probation violation on a 2017 assault and unlawful use of a weapon conviction.
He has been convicted of several crimes since 2017, including the unlawful use of a weapon, attempt to commit a class C/unclassified felony, fourth-degree assault, obliterating a firearm ID number, harassment, fraudulent use of a credit card, unauthorized use of a vehicle, and second-degree theft, according to state records.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office said detectives would be searching all day Sunday and possibly Monday to further investigate.