U.S. federal agents shot two people in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday afternoon.
“Two people are in the hospital following a shooting involving federal agents,” Portland police said in a statement.
Police said they responded to information that a man who had been shot was calling for help at 2:18 p.m. local time.
“Officers responded and found a male and female with apparent gunshot wounds,” authorities said. “Officers applied a tourniquet and summoned emergency medical personnel. The patients were transported to the hospital. Their conditions are unknown. Officers have determined the two people were injured in the shooting involving federal agents.”
According to a police dispatch, the woman was shot in the chest and the male was shot twice in the arm.
The incident caused a city council meeting to end abruptly. City Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney said at the meeting that she believed the shooting victims were still alive.
In a statement, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the incident began during a “targeted vehicle stop” by Border Patrol agents.
“The passenger of the vehicle and target is a Venezuelan illegal alien affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua prostitution ring and involved in a recent shooting in Portland,” McLaughlin claimed. “The vehicle driver is believed to be a member of the vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.”
McLaughlin then provided a similar account to the one she gave about an ICE agent killing 37-year-old mother Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
“When agents identified themselves to the vehicle occupants, the driver weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents. Fearing for his life and safety, an agent fired a defensive shot,” she claimed. “The driver drove off with the passenger, fleeing the scene. This situation is evolving, and more information is forthcoming.”
The site where police reported the shooting occurred is about a 15-minute drive from where the gunshot victims were found. According to The New York Times, EMTs at the scene described the two victims as Spanish speakers.
The FBI said in a statement it was investigating an “assault” involving two Customs and Border Patrol agents.
“The two assailants fled the scene immediately following the shooting and are currently being treated for their injuries,” it said in part. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation led by the FBI.”
The Daily Beast has also contacted Customs and Border Protection for comment.
In a statement, Portland Police Chief Bob Day referenced Wednesday’s fatal shooting.
“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” Day said. “We understand the heightened emotion and tension many are feeling in the wake of the shooting in Minneapolis, but I am asking the community to remain calm as we work to learn more.”
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson also spoke about Wednesday’s “horrific” shooting, which spurred marches and vigils into Thursday night, before commenting on the “deeply troubling incident” in his city.
“Just one day after the horrific violence in Minnesota at the hands of federal agents, our community here in Portland is now grappling with another deeply troubling incident,” Wilson said in a statement.
“Earlier this afternoon, two people were injured by federal agents in the Hazelwood neighborhood. We cannot sit by while constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts. Portland is not a training route for militarized agents. As mayor, I called on ICE to end all operations in Portland until a full investigation can be completed, to urge Portlanders not respond to violence with violence, and to show up with calm and purpose during this difficult time.”
In a press conference later that night, Wilson spoke about the DHS’s statement about the Portland shootings.
“We know what the federal government says happened here,” he said. “There was a time when we could take them at their word. That time has long passed.”
On Wednesday night, Portland saw vigils for Good, a U.S. citizen whose killing the Trump administration is defending as an appropriate use of force by the ICE agent, even though she was seen on video driving away from him.
Portland, like Minneapolis and other blue-leaning cities, has been a focus of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. In October, following protests at the city’s ICE facility, the president attempted to deploy National Guard troops to the city, but was blocked by a federal judge he had appointed.
Late last month, Trump announced he was withdrawing the National Guard from Portland, as well as Chicago and Los Angeles.
