Federal agents shot two people in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday afternoon, just one day after a killing by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent sparked national outrage.
The Department of Homeland Security told The Intercept that the agents responsible for the shooting were conducting immigration enforcement with the U.S. Border Patrol, a division of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. KATU, the local ABC affiliate, had previously reported the agents were with CBP.
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the agents shot the two people during a traffic stop, calling the passenger “a Venezuelan illegal alien affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua prostitution ring” and saying the agency “believed” the driver was “a member of the vicious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.” DHS has provided no evidence for the allegations, nor for McLaughlin’s additional claim that the passenger was “involved a recent shooting in Portland.”
According to a briefing published by the city government, Portland Police responding to a report of gunshots at 2:18 p.m. “confirmed that federal agents had been involved in a shooting.”
Minutes later, Portland Police “found a male and female with apparent gunshot wounds,” the briefing states. They were transported to a hospital.
“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” said Portland Police Chief Bob Day. “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.”
The shooting came just one day after an ICE agent in Minneapolis, who The Intercept identified as Jonathan Ross, shot and killed Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three who had been observing protests against immigration raids.
This developing story has been updated.
IT’S EVEN WORSE THAN WE THOUGHT.
What we’re seeing right now from Donald Trump is a full-on authoritarian takeover of the U.S. government.
This is not hyperbole.
Court orders are being ignored. MAGA loyalists have been put in charge of the military and federal law enforcement agencies. The Department of Government Efficiency has stripped Congress of its power of the purse. News outlets that challenge Trump have been banished or put under investigation.
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IT’S BEEN A DEVASTATING year for journalism — the worst in modern U.S. history.
We have a president with utter contempt for truth aggressively using the government’s full powers to dismantle the free press. Corporate news outlets have cowered, becoming accessories in Trump’s project to create a post-truth America. Right-wing billionaires have pounced, buying up media organizations and rebuilding the information environment to their liking.
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I’M BEN MUESSIG, The Intercept’s editor-in-chief. It’s been a devastating year for journalism — the worst in modern U.S. history.
We have a president with utter contempt for truth aggressively using the government’s full powers to dismantle the free press. Corporate news outlets have cowered, becoming accessories in Trump’s project to create a post-truth America. Right-wing billionaires have pounced, buying up media organizations and rebuilding the information environment to their liking.
In this most perilous moment for democracy, The Intercept is fighting back. But to do so effectively, we need to grow.
That’s where you come in. Will you help us expand our reporting capacity in time to hit the ground running in 2026?
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