Federal Immigration Agents Shoot Two Near Portland Clinic Amid Probes

Federal immigration officers fired on a vehicle in East Portland this afternoon, wounding a man and a woman who subsequently drove several miles to seek help, officials said. The incident unfolded about 2:18 p.m. on the 10200 block of Southeast Main Street near an Adventist Health medical office, and the injured pair were located at Northeast 146th Avenue and East Burnside Street minutes later and taken to a hospital.

Portland police said local officers were not involved in the shooting but were first to arrive on the initial report of gunfire and later found the wounded people after a call for assistance. Police provided emergency aid at the second location and summoned paramedics. The identities and precise medical conditions of the two victims have not been released. Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney said, “As far as we know both of these individuals are still alive,” and their conditions were “not immediately known” in early updates.

The Department of Homeland Security said U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. Border Patrol agents identified themselves to the vehicle occupants and that the driver “weaponized his vehicle and attempted to run over the law enforcement agents.” DHS posted that “fearing for his life and safety, an agent fired a defensive shot.” DHS also asserted that one passenger was from Venezuela, was in the United States illegally and was “believed to be affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua prostitution ring,” and that the person had been involved in a prior shooting in Portland. Those allegations have not been independently confirmed.

The FBI confirmed it has opened an investigation into the shooting, and officials said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced a state-level review by the Department of Justice to determine “whether any federal officer acted outside the scope of their lawful authority,” saying the inquiry will include witness interviews, video evidence and other relevant material.

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson and the city council called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to suspend operations in the city pending the outcome of the investigations. Portland Police Chief Bob Day stressed that local officers did not fire any shots and said his department secured both the initial scene and the site where the wounded people were located while federal and federally led probes proceed. Chief Day urged calm amid heightened tensions following an ICE-related fatal shooting in Minneapolis the previous day.

The shooting prompted immediate public reaction and street-level confrontation. Federal agents and FBI personnel were visible at the site, and Portland police used a public-address system to order crowds outside a federal facility to disperse; several people were taken into custody during protests near the ICE and CBP building. U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley appealed for peaceful protest on social media, posting, “Trump wants to generate riots. Don't take the bait.”

Key questions remain unresolved, including the victims’ identities and current medical status, independent verification of DHS’s allegations about gang affiliation and prior criminal activity, the number of federal agents involved, and the precise sequence of events inside the parking lot encounter. The overlapping federal and state investigations are likely to shape debate over enforcement authority and local control in the coming days.