Road Rage Incident Leads To Bias Crime Arrest

PORTLAND, Ore. — Police deescalated a road rage incident on Friday afternoon in Southwest Portland and arrested a man on bias crime charges. A Central Precinct Sergeant witnessed two drivers yelling at each other as they pulled up in front of the precinct on Southwest 2nd Avenue.

The sergeant called for backup as one driver was yelling at the other. The officers attempted to deescalate the situation by separating them. The sergeant quickly learned that one of the drivers was the victim of a bias crime. He allegedly had been menaced by that he thought was a gun. Officers took the suspect driver into custody, but did not find a gun on him.

Bias Crime Detectives were called in to assist with the investigation. They found the suspect, Neal Hollis Walker, 54, pulled up to the victim in the area of South Macadam Avenue and South Taylors Ferry Road. He began making bias statements about the victim being of Asian descent and his belief that he was from China. The suspect then pointed a black object in a manner that made the victim believe it was a gun.

The suspect then drove off, and the victim followed him and called 9-1-1. Both drivers headed to the Central Precinct.

The investigation reveals the object used by the suspect was actually a black plastic air hose. it has been seized as evidence. The victim was uninjured in the ordeal. Detectives booked Walker into the Multnomah County Detention Center on charges of Bias Crime in the Second Degree and Menacing.

The Portland Police Bureau investigates all reports of bias-motivated crimes and encourages any member of the community who is the victim of such crimes to contact law enforcement.

Oregon law defines a Bias crime as any criminal act that targets a victim’s race, color, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or national origin. Detectives work to determine whether or not bias elements are present during the reported crime that align with Oregon law.

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