The Multnomah County Elections building in Portland was attacked in what police say was a coordinated vandalism incident early Monday. Hooded and masked individuals shattered windows and sprayed anti-government graffiti in what police described as an "orchestrated attack." Portland Police Chief Bob Day reported that the group of eight to ten people executed a swift, planned assault, completing their vandalism in mere minutes and fleeing as officers arrived. "They were on scene for probably two minutes. So they definitely showed up with a plan ... and were gone just as quickly just after they did the damage," Day said.
Despite the attack coinciding with President Trump's inauguration as the 47th president, Day said no direct connection to the political event has been established, stating such acts occur "regardless of who's in office." Authorities are actively pursuing leads using surveillance footage depicting the suspects, who were wearing gray hoodies and masks. As of Tuesday morning, no arrests had been made, prompting police to seek public assistance.
The Multnomah County Elections office was operating as usual on Tuesday, albeit with some boarded up windows that will hopefully be repaired by next week. "Nothing like this has happened before in the 17 years I've been with Multnomah County," Elections Director Tim Scott said. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)