Self-proclaimed anarchists boasted that they had “set fire to a car” parked in front of a Portland, Oregon, city commissioner's home early Friday morning.
A 2024 Honda Accord caught fire outside Commissioner Rene Gonzalez's home around 1:30 a.m. Friday. No one was injured and firefighters were able to extinguish the fire.
Investigators believe someone set a car on fire while it was parked outside the home of Portland City Commissioner Rene Gonzalez in the early morning hours of Friday, January 12, 2024. The car belonged to the secretary-general's family, and he had been the target of vandalism several times during the campaign. (Screenshot courtesy of Fox 12)
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Firefighters found evidence that the fire was intentionally set and are investigating the fire as arson, according to the Portland Police Bureau. Gonzalez's statement said the arrangement was a family one.
On Monday, a local blog in Portland that publishes zines and “calls to action” for anarchists and extremists shared a post in which anarchists claim responsibility for “local acts of self-defense.”
“This was accomplished with a fire starter found in the outdoor section of a big box store,” wrote an anonymous blogger. “My only regret is that I didn't attack the other two cars that were parked outside my house.”
A PPB spokesperson would not comment on whether the blog post was part of the investigation.
Vandals have frequently targeted Gonzalez, a political newcomer who considers himself a centrist and supporter of law and order. Gonzalez's campaign headquarters windows have been smashed several times in the run-up to the 2022 election in which he ousted incumbent Jo Ann Hardesty, who advocated defunding the police.
Tents cover a plaza near the Steel Bridge in Portland, Oregon, on July 7, 2023. Homelessness is a key issue in Gonzalez's 2022 campaign, and he has come under fire for controversial policies to address it, including a ban on city government activities. Distribution of tents and tarps. (Hannah Rae Lambert/Fox News Digital)
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Far-left activists have opposed Mr. Gonzalez's efforts to address public safety, livability and the homeless crisis, including banning city officials from distributing tents and tarps to people sleeping outdoors. Friday's attack was deliberately carried out just before a winter storm hit the Portland area, toppling trees and knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses, the blog post said.
“May this be a warning to politicians and their capitalist cronies, and a call to action to other anarchists,” the post continued. “Unity means attack!”
The anarchists dedicated the attack to the memory of their “elders,” naming recently deceased anarchists from around the world, including those involved in a shootout with police last year in what protesters called “Cop City.” Also included was Manuel Esteban Paez Teran, who died in . Atlanta.
They also dedicated the attack to Isaac L. Seavey and Tyrone Johnson II, two men killed by Portland police last month. Seavey was shot to death near a homeless encampment, and police reported finding a handgun near his body but did not say whether he fired a shot. Officers shot and killed Johnson on December 27, calling him an “armed suspect.”
Self-proclaimed anarchists claimed responsibility for the fire in a blog post on Monday, January 15, 2024. They called it an “act of local self-defense” against Gonzalez, whose support for law enforcement and enforcement efforts have angered activists. Solving the homeless problem in the city. (Screenshot courtesy of Fox 12)
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Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt called the incident outside Gonzalez's home “an act of political vandalism” and said “unlawful coercion will not be tolerated.”
“If arson is confirmed, we will seek out and prosecute those responsible for this act to the fullest extent of the law,” Schmidt said in a statement.
The investigation continued as of Tuesday.
