Property Damaged, One Person Arrested In Downtown Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. — Property was damaged and one person was arrested in downtown Portland on Thursday.  Federal officers used force to engage the crowd several hours later.

Portland Police responded to a crowd trespassing at the Wells Fargo Center on Southwest 5th Avenue between Jefferson and Columbia just before 2:30pm.  About 30 people were refusing to leave.  Some were smoking inside the building and had pets.  The situation escalated and people began damaging property including a television and the front doors to the building.

22-year-old Dylan Howard was arrested on the steps of the Federal Courthouse on Southwest 3rd Avenue.

Howard is charged with Criminal Mischief and Resisting Arrest.  Police say an officer was punched in the face.

People dressed in black tore down boards covering the windows of the Federal Courthouse, spray-painted graffiti, set fires and burned flags.  They were pushed back by federal officers using tear gas around 9:00pm.