PORTLAND, Ore. — Federal immigration officers shot and wounded two people in a vehicle outside a Portland hospital on Thursday, authorities said, an incident that followed the fatal shooting of a driver by an immigration officer in Minnesota a day earlier and intensified tensions over federal enforcement operations.
The shooting prompted hundreds of protesters to gather outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland on Thursday night. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said his office would investigate “whether any federal officer acted outside the scope of their lawful authority” and would refer potential criminal charges to prosecutors if warranted.
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said the vehicle’s passenger was “a Venezuelan illegal alien affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua prostitution ring” and had been involved in a recent shooting in Portland. DHS said that during a “targeted vehicle stop” Thursday afternoon, agents identified themselves and the driver attempted to run them over.
“Fearing for his life and safety, an agent fired a defensive shot,” the statement said, adding that the driver fled the scene with the passenger.
There was no immediate independent corroboration of DHS’s account or of any alleged gang affiliation. In previous incidents during President Donald Trump’s expanded immigration enforcement efforts, including Wednesday’s fatal shooting in Minneapolis, video evidence has raised questions about official descriptions of events.
Trump and his allies have repeatedly blamed Tren de Aragua for violence and drug activity in some U.S. cities.
Thursday’s shooting escalated tensions in Portland, a city with a long-running and contentious relationship with Trump. His administration’s decision to deploy militarized personnel to conduct immigration enforcement has drawn sustained protests in the city, including outside ICE facilities. A recent attempt to deploy National Guard troops in Portland failed.
According to the Portland Police Bureau, officers responded at about 2:18 p.m. to a report of a shooting outside Adventist Health hospital. Minutes later, police received a report of a wounded person seeking help in a residential area several kilometres away. Officers found a man and a woman with gunshot wounds and determined they were injured during the encounter with federal agents.
The victims’ conditions were not immediately known. Police said officers applied a tourniquet to one of the wounded. City Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney said during a council meeting that both individuals were believed to be alive and that officials were hoping for positive updates.
At a news conference Thursday night, Portland Police Chief Bob Day said the Federal Bureau of Investigation was leading the investigation and that he had no details about the circumstances that led to the shooting.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson and the city council called on ICE to suspend all operations in the city until the investigation is complete.
“We stand united as elected officials in saying that we cannot sit by while constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts,” the officials said in a joint statement. “Portland is not a ‘training ground’ for militarized agents, and the ‘full force’ threatened by the administration has deadly consequences.”
Wilson also questioned the federal government’s version of events. “There was a time we could take them at their word,” he said. “That time is long past.”
State Sen. Kayse Jama, who lives near the scene, said Oregon is a welcoming state and told federal agents to leave.
City officials said “federal militarization undermines effective, community-based public safety” and pledged to use legal and legislative tools to protect residents’ civil and human rights. They urged the public to demonstrate “with calm and purpose.”
Dozens of people gathered near the location where police found the wounded victims Thursday evening. “It’s just been chaos,” said Anjalyssa Jones, one of those present. “The community is trying to get answers.”
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley urged protesters to remain peaceful. “Trump wants to generate riots,” he wrote on social media. “Don’t take the bait.”