Two people were arrested in Portland Sunday night in connection with a shooting that took place near the area where thousands of protesters have descended nightly for two months, police said.
Officers responded to reports of shots fired near Lownsdale Square Park about 7:24 p.m. They said a person believed to be the gunshot victim later arrived at a hospital via a private vehicle with non-life-threatening injuries.
Police later said that when they were near the park, someone pointed out a bag to them, which contained loaded rifle magazines and at least two Molotov cocktails.
A photo released by the department shows the two improvised incendiaries — fashioned out of rags and Mason jars — along with four banana clips.
Cops didn’t immediately respond to questions about whether the two incidents were connected. It also wasn’t clear whether the shooting was linked to the demonstrations.
Police made multiple announcements that anyone who interfered with the ongoing investigation would be “subject to arrest.”
This came as people again turned up in Oregon’s largest city to protest racism and police brutality, as they have since George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis cops in May.
The city has increasingly been marked by violent clashes between demonstrators and authorities — including federal agents deployed by the Trump administration.
Early on Sunday, authorities declared a riot as thousands breached a federal courthouse where the agents are being stationed.
With Post wires