PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The suspect Setting ballot boxes on fire An experienced metal worker in Oregon and Washington state may be plotting additional attacks, authorities said Wednesday.
Portland Police Bureau spokesman Mike Penner said the man, who set incendiary devices at ballot boxes in Portland, Oregon and nearby Vancouver, Washington, had “experience” in metal fabrication and welding.
Benner said the way the devices are constructed and the way they are attached to the metal drop boxes shows that expertise.
Authorities have described the suspect as a white man in his 30s to 40s with bald or very short hair.
Police said earlier Surveillance video was shown A driver of a black or dark colored 2001 to 2004 Volvo S-60. The vehicle had no front license plate, but it had a rear plate with unknown letters or numbers.
The incendiary devices were marked with the message “Free Gaza,” a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
A third device, placed in a different drop box in Vancouver earlier this month, had the words “Free Palestine” in addition to “Free Gaza”.
Investigators are trying to identify the person responsible and a motive for the suspected arson attacks Hundreds of ballots were destroyed or damaged At the drop box in Vancouver on Monday, the box’s fire suppression system did not work as planned. Authorities are trying to determine if the suspect actually held pro-Palestinian views or used a message to try to create confusion.
According to Benner, surveillance footage captured the Volvo pulling into a drop box in Portland shortly before nearby security personnel discovered the fire inside the box on Monday. Police said the early morning fire was quickly extinguished by the box’s suppression system and the efforts of a nearby watchman. Only three ballot papers inside were damaged.
A ballot box in Vancouver that burned had a fire suppression system, but that failed to prevent hundreds of ballots from burning, said Greg Kimsey, a longtime elected auditor in Clark County, Washington, which includes Vancouver. Kimsey said Tuesday that the exact number of destroyed ballots was unknown, and that about 475 damaged ballots were recovered from the box.
Election officials on Wednesday planned to seek information on who cast the damaged ballots in hopes that voters could be given replacement ballots. Gimsey asked that voters who cast ballots at a transit center box between 11 a.m. Saturday and early Monday morning contact her office for a replacement ballot.
Officials in Portland said Monday that enough materials were recovered from the arson devices to show the two fires were connected — and that they started at a different ballot box in Vancouver on Oct. 8 are connected to the ignition device. No ballot papers were damaged in the incident.
Voters in Washington are encouraged to check the status of their ballots www.votewa.gov Monitor their return status. If the returned ballot is not marked “received,” voters can print a replacement ballot or alternatively visit their local election department, the secretary of state’s office said.
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Durkin Richer reports from Washington. Contributed by Gene Johnson in Seattle.
