All right, good afternoon. I know most of you in the room, but for those of you who I do not know, my name is Mike Benner. I am the public information manager here at the Portland Police Bureau. Uh again, welcome. Um and I appreciate your patience. I know everyone saw the information come out from the Department of Homeland Security this morning regarding uh Tren Arawa. Chief will address uh that. He'll have some remarks and he also wants to address the protest activity from last night and what we expect moving forward and what our posture will be with that. Chief, >> thank you. >> Good afternoon everyone. Thanks for joining us today. I recently uh recently read the Declaration of Independence for the first time and uh this great document we're going to celebrate 250 years um this July. And there's that commonly referred to line about certain inalib rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But the line that immediately follows what struck me as a seasoned law enforcement professional. And it says that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. And that is really a passion of mine of the Portland Police Bureau that we understand that we derive our powers from the consent of the governed. that Portlanders have expressed to us how they desire to be policed and how they desire to interact with their local law enforcement. That will always continue to be a priority of mine. And we have done that remarkably over the last year, particularly in the area of public order. I'm so tremendously proud of the way that we have all showed up, both our community, sometimes in the tens of thousands or maybe minor protests. And even this week with the events in Minneapolis, that certainly uh concerns us and raised the tension and the and the fear and the angst. And we had uh a demonstration that evening and then the demonstrations last night and the public order events that are happening today and throughout the weekend. I have high expectations that we will continue to be able to express our dissent in a way that demonstrates our commitment to showing how we want to be governed. And that means doing so in a way that is calm or is peaceful or is nonviolent, whatever the terminology that you choose to use u but an expectation that these public order events can be held and participated in by all and that they are a place of safety for all including our public officials and our first responders. Um last night we had a couple of events that occurred. one that was across the street here at city hall. Um several hundred participants and then we also had several hundred down at the facility in South Waterfront. Um we along with our partners from the Oregon State Police were present down at South Waterfront last night. We did see an increased amount of energy and intensity which we anticipated given the events of yesterday and on the heels of Minneapolis and appropriately so. I understand Portlanders concern. I understand Portlanders fear and frustration. I believe there is legitimacy to that and we anticipated that there would be an increased amount of energy. Historically this past year in our public order events through dialogue officers, through announcements, and through uh cooperation, we've been able to achieve results and minimize arrests and minimize conflict. Last night, there were some who chose not to follow the direction of the officers and we were required to make a couple of arrests, six actual arrests for disorderly conduct. Um, we had uh a couple of officers that were slightly injured. There was one force event not involving uh munitions, just a force event that will be thoroughly investigated and reviewed through our afteraction process. Um, but overall considering the uh heightened amount of energy and concern uh last night, I'm still very grateful for uh the overall vet and the participation and in looking forward to the weekend where we can continue to demonstrate um our ability to express those first amendment rights. Um, we will continue to be challenged with all of the various influences that are coming upon us, but I am asking and encouraging Portlanders to not um, lose the uh, credibility that we have built up, not only locally, but nationally uh, will tell you that police chiefs from around the country um, and I have talked about how Portland is managing. And um I am hopeful that although the concern is high that we will have a uh a peaceful but robust and active weekend. We encourage that participation. Um I was asked yesterday in the press conference about the uh trend Ara group also known as TDA. Um at that time I had uh did not have pertinent information as to their uh potential role or involvement here um in the city. uh doing some more digging, sought some more information. Once the names of the people who were shot yesterday by the federal officers came out, um we were able to do some investigating on our part to see if there was any nexus or relationship with um the Portland Police Bureau or regional partners. Um I can confirm uh first and foremost that these uh two individuals are in stable condition. They are still um hospitalized. They are in custody of the uh federal law enforcement, but grateful that they are um appear to be on the road to recovery and I'm grateful for that. Um they do have uh some uh nexus to uh involvement with TDA. We can confirm that. Um we know that um we had a shooting in northeast Portland in July of this year and the victim in that shooting uh was selfidentified as a Venezuelan immigrant who informed us that the suspects in that shooting were associated with TDA. Now based upon that we've been working that case. It's an ongoing investigation, but we have been working that case. And there's also been involvement with the two people who were shot yesterday by the federal officers through some criminal cases out in Washington County. So, this is a a regional effort as we look at this um group affiliation and the potential for violence uh that uh has occurred and um it's still ongoing. So I don't have details and what I can say is there is an association with the two folks um yesterday and um TDA. I hesitated to even share this information initially because I'm very aware of the historic um injustice of victim blaming um oftent times portrayed by law enforcement including this very agency that I've represented so proudly for so many years and historically we have um not um been uh quick to disclose the potential criminal history of others. But I felt it was imperative because I was asked yesterday in the news conference what information we have. This is information we have. Um this in no way draws a through line to the actions or the behaviors that occurred yesterday. I want to speak for just a moment specifically to my Latino community. It saddens it. saddens me that we even have to qualify um these remarks because I understand or at least have attempted to understand through your voices your concern, your fear, your anger. Uh this information uh in no way is meant to to disparage or to condone or support or agree with any of the actions that occurred yesterday. But it is important that we stay committed to the rule of law, that we stay committed to the facts, that we stay um a trustworthy and legitimate uh police department for all of Portlanders. Um we are currently uh involved in this investigation with our federal partners, of which I'm very grateful for. Um and and we have been uh able to assist and provide perspective and have a small area of participation as we um as this investigation continues. I am proud of the relationships we have with our federal partners. We have relied upon them in many ways through the enforcement of human trafficking, fentanyl, gun violence, etc. and um I have appreciated their work on a local level and their willingness to have us engage in the investigation at this time I think is a demonstration of that um ongoing relationship um and information sharing. I believe in doing so um this will help uh hopefully bring um some transparency to the process for Portlanders um to be able to recognize. I'm also in regular communication with the district attorney and uh attorney general Dan Rayfield and um their teams as well are supporting in participating in this process. When I say participating, I want to be clear this is not a parallel investigation by the Portland Police Bureau. We are present but we are not conducting our own independent investigation. um that's not our role in this and uh would not be uh that the necessary information to do that would not be made available to us because we're dependent upon that participation and cooperation um with our federal partners. But um we are at the table and um we are learning as we go and hopefully um because this is new territory for us that once the investigation is completed there'll be an opportunity um to share that information holistically. I can't speak to that uh currently. So uh with all that I think we're ready for a few questions. >> We'll do uh we have about five about 10 minutes or so for uh questions and answers. And as chief mentioned when it comes to the criminal group Tren dear uh we cannot get in uh to great detail about these cases because they're open and ongoing. So I just hope you keep that in mind. Um and also just know how the questions uh might resonate with our Latino community. one that obviously the chief has a great relationship with. So, with that, um, we'll open up to questions and answers. Please state your name, uh, who you're with and who the questions for, and, uh, we'll have Chief do his best to repeat the question, uh, for the cameras as well. We'll start with Maxine. >> Uh, I have two questions. One, uh, the July shooting in Northeast Portland, where was that? And can you describe the circumstances? And my second question is, when Portland police arrived at the uh medical office uh after the first 911 call, were there federal officers that stayed there that police interacted with? >> Okay. So, question one, Max, I understand, was um the shooting in Northeast Dayton location uh July 11th, 2025 at Northeast 81st in Mason. Um I don't have the reports in front of me. is just some notes that I have, but Mike can track down, you know, the reports or things that we need on that. Um, in regards to our arrival at the shooting scene itself at 101 in Maine, and your question was whether or not federal officers were still present upon our arrival. Is that correct? And I'm going to ask uh Assistant Chief Simon just to answer that question. He was uh out not out on scene yesterday. And can you explain answer that? >> Yep. Uh Rob Simon, the assistant chief of investigations, and yes, they were still on scene when we arrived. the the Customs and Border Patrol. >> Yes. >> How many? >> Um, initially there was at least seven or eight. Uh, then that number quickly grew as their investigative team showed up from various other federal agencies. >> And the black part that was left behind at that scene that was uh was that belonging to the federal officers? >> Uh, since that's so so integral to the part of the investigation, I'm going to limit that comment and not disclose that at this time. >> Adrian, >> thanks. Uh, Chief Adrien Thomas, KPTV. Um, I think it's important to clarify he had no idea of this enforcement action by Border Patrol prior to it happening. And given everything that's happened in the last 24 hours, what's your message to federal officials if they are going to continue these types of traffic stops in terms of giving you a heads up if they're going to be in a certain area at a certain time? >> Yes. So we did not have any information ahead of time. Both of these events, the shooting scene itself and then where the victims drove themselves to, um, you know, were reported to us via the traditional dispatch system. Um, it is always complex when multiple agencies are working within one jurisdiction. So this is not unique just to our federal partners, but you know, as police officers in the state of Oregon, we have authority throughout the state. So although I'm a Portland police officer, I'm designated as a state officer. So I could go do police work in Pendleton today. Um typically when we do that, we we do provide a heads up, just an awareness so that the other agency knows what's going on so we don't face some of these situations such as this. So, you know, we're continuing to communicate to our federal partners that any information they can provide ahead of time so we can be aware of um to provide, you know, a greater level of safety and security for everyone involved, we are in favor of. We certainly can't mandate that or or demand that, but that is a conversation that we've been having and sometimes it has occurred and sometimes it has not. Yesterday was one of those where it didn't. >> I have two questions. First of all, thank you so much for this opportunity to ask some questions. Um, one, aside from the affiliation or link to that July uh, shooting, did these two individuals have any other criminal background? Had they been charged? Had they been convicted of anything or was it just that suspicion? Um, I have uh been advised that uh the woman was arrested for prostitution in Washington County and that the male was a present when a search warrant was served in Washington County. I don't know if they were together. I don't know if that was simultaneous. Um but um that's the information that we've received. And then my second question is about not just the tactics but the rhetoric that the federal government has been using in relation to the immigration enforcement. How does that impact your ability to maintain your relationships with community members and to maintain trust? >> Yeah. So the question is regarding you know the messaging that we see coming from the federal government and how does that impact our ability um on a local level and I would I would suggest that um this is challenging not just on the part of the federal government really a responsibility that we all have um in how we portray these events and uh particularly when it comes to law enforcement action. Um, as I've said earlier, I'm tremendously proud of this profession, but um, I'm also well aware of the history of policing in our country and um, some of the harms perpetrated at the hands of law enforcement and the and uh, recognizing that that I want to recognize and and really identify that that fear and that concern that people share um, has legitimacy. So on the other hand, um it's in a profession that is called upon daily, 260,000 times or so this year in the last year in the city of Portland were calls for service. So people look to us regularly to step into spaces that are very complex and very difficult, usually with a great deal of risk. And the men and women of the Portland Police Bureau do that with immense bravery and training and preparation. And I am so honored to be able to be a part of that with them. Anytime that we have messaging that jumps to conclusions, anytime that we make assumptions or assertions, then we are definitely putting the entire system at risk. You're putting the investigation at risk. You're putting the legitimacy and the off other officers safety at risk and you're certainly putting the community safeties at risk. And I think this is the crux of what we're really struggling with in a lot of ways is we are all trying to find an area of certainty which I totally understand. We are all trying to find an area of certainty. But the reality is that many competing truths can be held at the same time. Um, immigration enforcement is not new to this country. There was immigration enforcement under the Biden administration. There was immigration enforcement under the Obama administration. This is not something new. The manner in which it's being done is certainly new and questionable in terms of its approach and certainly the um emphasis is new. Um, but the uh the reality is that this building down in South Waterfront has been around for a long time. So that's a truth. But there's also a truth in once again the behavior and the actions that we're seeing that's causing so much fear in our communities, not just in Portland, but around the country. That's true. There's a role for public order. There's a role for demonstrations and for protests and for an expression that first. That's a truth. There's a role for law enforcement to be able to provide that safety and protection for all Portlanders. That's a truth. These things can all be held at the same time. And where we are losing our grip is when we hold so tightly to just our own to just our own truth and not recognize that these others exist. And I will tell you, the Portland Police Bureau will always be committed to the rule of law and will always be committed to recognizing these many truths and trying to balance them and hold them all lightly and honoring them all at the same time. >> Your relationship, >> I think that um our community, my our relationship with the community today is stronger than it has been in probably uh at least decades of my career. I am so grateful. I have been on the phone almost 24 hours other than a slight bit of sleep with community leaders from across the spectrum and that's why you know even sharing this information around this association is so difficult and painful for me because I understand from what I have been told that fear that suddenly this is going to be some wholesale blaming this wholesale uh approval of the actions that happened yesterday and that is not the case um nothing that I've said today should be warranted in any way to to affirm whatever happened yesterday as part of the investigation, but it is factual information we have. It is factual information that I was asked and I felt the need to respond. >> Asian press, thanks for coming today. So, both the man and the woman shot yesterday, they were both involved in that July shooting that you mentioned. And can you explain what their role was in that shooting? >> Um, I cannot say that they were both involved in the shooting on July 11th. I apologize. What I'm saying is through the investigation of the shooting on July 11th, there became a nexus to them. Um whether they were involved, I do not know. Um as far as I am aware, they haven't been named as, you know, suspects. Um they haven't been charged in it, but because of the information Portland police officers received on the July 11th in incident from the victim, we then um proceeded down the investigations which led us to this information sharing with Washington County. They have not been confirmed as the shooters. >> No. No, they have not been confirmed as the shooters. >> And the victim who called to report the shooting, what did they say? What were the circumstances about it? >> Uh, I don't have the details of that from the report. I just have been advised he was a Venezuelan immigrant. He did express to us that um he believed that the people who um shot at him were part of TDA. >> Um, now that the mayor has explicitly said that he does not want to operate in Portland. I'm curious, how does that impact your relationship with ICE? And so, if you at all, I mean, are you getting direction to back away a bit? >> Yeah. So, the question was uh with the comments from the mayor regarding having ICE out of Portland, how does that impact our relationships and um I appreciate Mayor Wilson. I appreciate his leadership and he's been very respectful of understanding the importance that I place upon relationships with all parties involved. and um so therefore uh he has not given me direction otherwise um to continue to be available. I've been on the phone today with some of our federal partners. Um we'll continue to be, you know, throughout the course of the weekend and through this investigation. Um and I think that's really in the best interest of all Portlanders so that we can try to provide as much information in as timely fashion as possible. >> Joey, >> thanks Chief. Joey Vak6, the federal government's spoken a lot about this group Trenawa on a national and international scale based on the facts that you've seen like you just referenced. What kind of presence does this group have in the Portland area? >> Well, we're learning uh more about that. Um we certainly can say that there is a presence. It um would not appear to be um as significant as maybe you know some have been led to believe. Uh I don't know if AC Simon has any more on that. you've been in conversation last 24 hours, but you good with that? >> Yeah. So, um it is, you know, a regional approach. I will say I appreciate support with Washington County and the, you know, effort to try and figure out where some of these uh folks might be that are directly related. Um but, you know, we're definitely uh definitely aware, definitely engaged. Uh even though I wasn't able to answer that question, I'm saying organizationally, we've got really skilled detectives that are that are working this and tracking this down. Uh, hey Chief John Adams, KDW. Just to kind of build on that last question, are you familiar with any possible activities that TDA might be known uh as a group to be involved with specifically uh either here or elsewhere that have been? >> No. Yeah. The question is, do I have any specific knowledge of activities that TDA's uh been involved with, you know, uh specifically locally or in the area? Um, and I do not I do not have uh anything specific more to share. What um was communicated to us um through the uh through the incident back in July with this victim. And as we have learned um is that often times they will prey on their own uh Venezuelan immigrant uh uh population because they know that they have a reluctance to want to engage with law enforcement. Um but uh once again this is something that we're you know getting up to speed in getting up to speed on >> Ben with K2. Can you point us to any cases or instances of criminal activity involving trenda? And second do you denounce and condemn the use of wars yesterday? >> Uh two questions. Can I uh give a case or an example? I don't have a case for you specifically related to them. The other one is, can I condemn uh the use of force yesterday? No, I will not do that at this time. It's an ongoing investigation. We need to um as as painful as it can be to hear these words from a police chief, um we need to trust the system. And I understand how flat that can fall with so many people, um maybe I need to find a a different terminology for that. But the reality is I believe as I see Max's eyes, um I believe that um this is the system that we have. It's the system that we're relying upon. It's the system that is in place. And I'm I'm a systems thinker. I believe in the importance that not just, you know, A equals B equals C, but that we look at it holistically. And there are so many so many aspects to the events of yesterday, just like there's so many aspects to the event of a police officer's actions today. um not to draw a false equivalency the the events of yesterday not only because the seriousness because of the um effect on life but also because of the national narrative and the intensity around it and all of the other collateral harms that we see happening. So I am going to continue to very much be committed and and believe that the system can continue to work. And I have one quick example why I do that. And it was held right here in Portland, Oregon in that building next door where for three day or two days, three Portland police command officers testified as the sole representatives for the city on why we did not need the National Guard deployed to the city of Portland. And based upon that testimony and based upon the excellent work of Portland Police Bureau members over the course of several months, a judge agreed with and cited and cited in her um state in her um report that uh the credibility of the Portland Police Bureau was definitely influential in that decision. And so the very fact that National Guard um did not wind up on the streets of Portland is a testament to the behaviors and the actions of the Portland Police Bureau. And it's also a testament to the system continuing to work. So I'm going to continue to ask us and encourage us. Um and uh maybe I got to find another line. Max, sorry. >> Got a few more minutes. Uh and then the gentleman in black >> Shanta with the capital. I was just curious what changed from yesterday to today that allowed you to have this information about the nexus um with these two individuals and how did you get that information? Did you look at court documents? Did you talk to prosecutors? How do you how do you >> Yeah. Yeah. So the question is what changed uh from yesterday to today around the information? Well um might be a little bit disappointing as chief of police I don't have my finger on the pulse of every single thing that happens in the organization every single day. And when I was asked that question yesterday by the reporter regarding my knowledge understanding of TDA um I answered truthfully when I said that I wasn't aware of any information because I wasn't. But I do like to follow up and be respectful of each of you and you know my commitment is to give you the information I have when I have it if I can. So came back to the office and said, "Hey, what do we know?" Um, also at that time I didn't have the names. We didn't have the names of the people. They'd been identified. Once they were identified, then we could search our information. Then there was conversation among our investigators and that's kind of how it all came together. >> DHS described Oh, Jack Billy, Cairo 7. DHS described this as a self-defense shooting. Do you understand that to be the case? Uh, I can't comment on the, uh, intent, you know, of the of the officers, um, how they perceived the incident. That's certainly all going to be looked at. Um, but that'll have to be mored out in the investigation. >> A couple more questions. Ask, have you asked for any of the body warn camera or security surveillance or have you seen it? Do you intend to seek it and release it? Well, as I said, you know, FBI is lead, so any of that evidentiary information is going to be dependent upon them in terms of, you know, release of that information. But I can tell you at this point, we've not seen any video or retrieved any video um of the incident. >> Joey, Alex, and then we're going to call it. >> You mentioned getting caught up to speed on the connection with these two individuals in particular, but what kind of prior knowledge, if any, does the Portland Police Bureau have about Trenawa present activity in the Portland area? Well, I hate putting Rob on the spot. He just uh took over this role of AC investigations. He's had some conversations over the last 24 hours, but I don't know if there's anything add or if that's been answered. I >> I'm not aware of the historical practices of TDA in the Portland area, but again, I'm new in this role coming from another spot, so I would have to I could follow up with you and get you that information. But >> well, maybe to rephrase, was the Portland Police Bureau aware of TDA activity and presence prior to this incident with CDP yesterday? >> Yes. Yes. Yeah. >> Oh, sorry cut you off, but that one I can answer. Um, yeah, we were because that's how the information came to us. I mean, literally, we're on the we're we're on the scene last night. Rob was out there, you know, having a conversation. There's a sergeant out there. I mean, this this is going to be a little bit disappointing because it may, you know, think that everything is just magical. But through that part of that conversation, sergeant used to be assigned to a unit that did a lot of shooting reviews and, you know, began to connect the points and say, "Oh, I think I remember we had this conversation. when this came up, then we were able to reach out to the investigators. So, definitely the Portland Police Bureau had some of that information. Um, we uh have a really robust uh shooting review process. We work with our um ceasefire program. We work with federal partners in that way. Um so, um you know, this may have been touched on back then. We can go back and look, but certainly uh top of mind for us now is and and as Rob said, we can get you more information as becomes available. >> Alex will be our last question. Yeah, just a quick one. We're getting a lot of conflicting information about um the injuries sustained by these two folks, whether they were shot in the chest or the arm, different spots. Do you know anything? Can you confirm any of them? >> Yeah, the uh gentleman was shot in the arm and uh we applied a tourniquet upon arrival. Um and uh the female was shot in the chest. Um I was told uh today that they both had to have surgery. Um but as I said earlier, they're in stable condition. We're grateful for that. Thank you all for coming. We appreciate it. I do not anticipate any other media availability for the day, but as always, we will keep your newsrooms informed if anything comes up. And I will be uh working with our incident management team tonight uh monitoring protest activity, and we'll of course keep everyone updated um if necessary. With that, thank you, and have a great rest of your day. >> Thank you.