A man from Portland, Oregon, has admitted guilt in connection with a violent attack on a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer. Robert Jacob Hoopes pleaded guilty on Wednesday to aggravated assault of a federal officer with a dangerous weapon causing bodily harm.
According to court records, the ICE office in Portland had faced ongoing protests for weeks leading up to the incident on June 14, 2025. A criminal complaint against Hoopes described how protesters had previously engaged in violent confrontations with ICE officers and had caused damage to both personal and government property at the location.
The FBI noted that these violent actions toward ICE personnel included throwing rocks, trash, and bricks taken from the premises. Surveillance footage reportedly showed Hoopes participating in such behavior during the incident.
Video taken from a camera near the facility’s entrance showed Hoopes hurling a rock into the building, striking an ICE enforcement officer in the face and resulting in serious facial injuries. Alongside other protesters, he then targeted the entrance using a damaged metal stop sign pole as a makeshift battering ram.
In addition to the felony charge of aggravated assault on a federal officer, Hoopes was also charged with damaging federal property valued at over $1,000 for using the metal pole to force open the entrance. Court documents indicated that the cost to repair the door exceeded $7,000.
The FBI’s investigation revealed that a photograph of Hoopes taken that day helped identify him through facial recognition software, which returned data likely matching images from various public sources. The closest match was connected to Reed College, and a similar tattoo on Hoopes’ left arm was visible in the security footage.
The FBI reached out to the safety director at Reed College, who provided Hoopes’ last known address. Hoopes graduated from the college in 2023 with a degree in computer science. An Oregon Live report stated that the community safety director was dismissed for sharing alumni address information with the FBI.
Hoopes is set to be sentenced by a U.S. District Court judge on May 12, 2026, facing a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
