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United States federal agents shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon, police said, while urging the local community to remain calm after heightened tensions following a separate shooting a day earlier in Minneapolis.
Portland police said in a statement: “Two people are in the hospital following a shooting involving federal agents.”
“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,” police chief Bob Day said.
Police said they were not involved in the incident, and the conditions of the two people were not known.
The Department of Homeland Security has reported that a U.S. Border Patrol agent discharged his weapon in self-defense during a “targeted vehicle stop.” According to their statement, the incident escalated when the agent perceived an imminent threat to his life and safety.
“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,” the statement said.
“The vehicle driver is believed to be a member of the vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
“When agents identified themselves to the vehicle occupants, the driver weaponised his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents.
“In response to the danger,” officials stated, “the agent fired a single protective shot. Subsequently, the driver, along with the passenger, fled the scene in the vehicle.”
Portland mayor Keith Wilson said the shooting in his city was the result of the flood of heavily armed federal agents as part of what US President Donald Trump says is a crackdown on illegal immigration.
“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,” he said.
“We cannot sit by while constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts. Portland is not a ‘training ground’ for militarised agents, and the ‘full force’ threatened by the administration has deadly consequences.”
A day earlier, a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot a 37-year-old mother of three in Minneapolis, drawing condemnation from local officials and sparking widespread protests in Minnesota and beyond.
The incident heightened brewing tensions around the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in US cities, and has led to a public dispute between local and federal authorities over the circumstances leading up to the shooting.
Federal authorities say the agent acted in self-defence, but local officials have disputed that claim, citing video of the incident.
