By CLAIRE RUSH, Related Press
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal immigration officers shot and wounded two folks in a automobile outdoors a hospital in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, a day after an officer shot and killed a driver in Minnesota, authorities stated.
The Division of Homeland Safety described the automobile’s passenger as “a Venezuelan unlawful alien affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua prostitution ring” who had been concerned in a current taking pictures in Portland. When brokers recognized themselves to the automobile occupants Thursday afternoon, the motive force tried to run them over, the division stated in a written assertion.
“Fearing for his life and security, an agent fired a defensive shot,” the assertion stated. “The driving force drove off with the passenger, fleeing the scene.”
There was no instant unbiased corroboration of these occasions or of any gang affiliation of the automobile’s occupants. Throughout prior shootings involving brokers concerned in President Donald Trump’s surge of immigration enforcement in U.S. cities, together with Wednesday’s taking pictures by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis, video proof solid doubt on the administration’s preliminary descriptions of what prompted the shootings.
Based on the the Portland Police bureau, officers initially responded to a report of a taking pictures close to a hospital at about 2:18 p.m.
A couple of minutes later, police acquired info {that a} man who had been shot was asking for assist in a residential space a few miles away. Officers then responded there and located the 2 folks with obvious gunshot wounds. Officers decided they have been injured within the taking pictures with federal brokers, police stated.
Their circumstances weren’t instantly recognized. Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney stated throughout a Portland metropolis council assembly that Thursday’s taking pictures came about within the jap a part of the town and that two Portlanders have been wounded.
“So far as we all know each of those people are nonetheless alive and we hope for extra optimistic updates all through the afternoon,” she stated.
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Regulation enforcement officers work the scene following reviews that federal immigration officers shot and wounded folks in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photograph/Jenny Kane)
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Regulation enforcement officers work the scene following reviews that federal immigration officers shot and wounded folks in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photograph/Jenny Kane)
The taking pictures escalates tensions in an metropolis that has lengthy had a contentious relationship with President Donald Trump, together with Trump’s current, failed effort to deploy Nationwide Guard troops within the metropolis.
Portland police secured each the scene of the taking pictures and the realm the place the wounded folks have been discovered pending investigation.
“We’re nonetheless within the early levels of this incident,” stated Chief Bob Day. “We perceive the heightened emotion and stress many are feeling within the wake of the taking pictures in Minneapolis, however I’m asking the neighborhood to stay calm as we work to be taught extra.”
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson and the town council referred to as on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to finish all operations in Oregon’s largest metropolis till a full investigation is accomplished.
“We stand united as elected officers in saying that we can’t sit by whereas constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts,” a joint assertion stated. “Portland will not be a ‘coaching floor’ for militarized brokers, and the ‘full power’ threatened by the administration has lethal penalties.”
Town officers stated “federal militarization undermines efficient, neighborhood‑primarily based public security, and it runs counter to the values that outline our area. We’ll use each authorized and legislative device out there to guard our residents’ civil and human rights.”
They urged residents to indicate up with “calm and function throughout this tough time.”
“We reply with readability, unity, and a dedication to justice,” the assertion stated. “We should stand collectively to guard Portland.”
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat, urged any protesters to stay peaceable.
“Trump desires to generate riots,” he stated in a publish on the X social media platform. “Don’t take the bait.”
