A man believed to have fatally shot a right-wing supporter in a violent situation at the Portland protests has been killed by police who attempted to arrest him, multiple outlets report.
On Thursday, Michael Forest Reinoehl, 48, was shot and killed by federal officers during a confrontation in Lacey, Washington, as first reported by The New York Times. Lt. Ray Brady of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office told the outlet that officers said Reinoehl was armed, and four officers fired upon him.
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The deadly arrest attempt came hours after Vice News published an interview with Reinoehl in which he seemed to admit to shooting and killing a man amid a clash between Black Lives Matter protesters and a caravan of President Donald Trump’s supporters on Saturday, Aug. 29, in Portland.
“You know, lots of lawyers suggest that I shouldn’t even be saying anything, but I feel it’s important that the world at least gets a little bit of what’s really going on,” Reinoehl told the outlet. “I had no choice. I mean, I, I had a choice. I could have sat there and watched them kill a friend of mine of color. But I wasn’t going to do that.”
According to CNN, the U.S. Marshals said in a statement that “the suspect produced a firearm, threatening the lives of law enforcement officers. Task force members responded to the threat and struck the suspect who was pronounced dead at the scene.”
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Police officials work at a scene where a man suspected of fatally shooting a supporter of a right-wing group in Portland, Ore., last week was killed as investigators moved in to arrest him in Lacey, Wash.
Ted Warren/AP/Shutterstock
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The victim of the Aug. 29, shooting, Aaron “Jay” Danielson, is reported to have been wearing a “Patriot Prayer” hat, which is a far-right group based in Portland that has repeatedly clashed with protesters, CNN reports.
The incident occurred after a miles-long caravan of Trump supporters drove into the Oregon city, which has seen daily protests over racial injustice and police brutality since the killing of George Floyd in May.
In a tweet the following morning, Trump shared a video of the pro-Trump caravan and called them “GREAT PATRIOTS!” He has repeatedly condemned Black Lives Matter protesters as “anarchists” and “thugs.”
On Thursday night, Trump, 74, tweeted: “Why aren’t the Portland Police ARRESTING the cold blooded killer of Aaron ‘Jay’ Danielson. Do your job, and do it fast. Everybody knows who this thug is. No wonder Portland is going to hell!”