Police shoot, kill man in Portland’s Pearl District

Two police officers shot and killed a man in Northwest Portland’s Pearl District Thursday morning.

According to Portland Police Bureau press release, the man who was shot was suspected of trying to shoot a security guard at a nearby Safeway days earlier.

“A suspect had come into the store, approached two uniformed security officers, falsely identified himself as an agent from the United States Secret Service, pointed a handgun at one of security officers, and pulled the trigger,” the release reads. “The gun did not fire. The security officers scuffled with the suspect before he fled the scene with the handgun in his possession.”

The suspect left behind a second gun, a shotgun in a case. Police said there were “threatening messages written on the shotgun shells that specifically named President Donald Trump.”

Investigators identified the suspect, who lived at an apartment building in the 1600 block of Northwest 16th Avenue, and police got a warrant for his arrest.

Portland police spokesperson Sgt. Kevin Allen said tactical officers and a crisis negotiation team were serving that warrant early Thursday morning.

“During that time, the suspect did not communicate with them and eventually there was a need to deploy gas into the apartment in order to prompt him to come out,” Allen said.

Officers evacuated the 10th floor of the building and then deployed tear gas and pepper spray. Police said the man exited the apartment carrying a handgun and pointed it an officer.

Two officers from the PPB Special Emergency Reaction Team fired their weapons at the man and he was killed.

Allen said officers recovered the handgun at the scene. No officers were injured.

Police did not release the names of the suspect or the officers involved.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office is investigating. Allen said the officers’ body camera footage will be reviewed.

Police had first reported at 6:44 a.m. they were responding to a “critical incident” in the area and nearby streets were closed.

The Fremont Bridge was partially closed at one point during the initial response.

“It was a really good vantage point for officers to kind of see what was going on in the apartment,” he said. “We utilize those points of observation whenever we can to increase the level of safety, as much as we possibly can.”