The Portland Police Bureau reported that two individuals were killed in separate shootings early Wednesday morning. On the Fourth of July, officers responding to a shooting call arrived in the 4400 block of Northeast 131st Place shortly after 1 a.m., where they found a man deceased.
The Fourth of July was a busy night, with fireworks being set off throughout the city despite a ban. The victim has not been identified publicly. A resident of Darrin’s Place Apartments on 131st Place stated that the deceased man frequently visited his companion, who resides at the complex.
The resident, who described the man as “usually friendly,” stated that he observed him earlier that evening walking outside, repeatedly going to and from his partner’s apartment on the second floor and the parking lot.
Do you know that the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office executed a retail theft mission last month that led to the recovery of more than $29,000 in stolen goods? On June 22, the mission was carried out near SE 82nd Ave. and SE Johnson Creek Blvd:
A little over an hour later, at approximately 2:38 a.m., officers responding to a second shooting call discovered a second man deceased in the 8400 block of North Exeter Avenue, according to police. This victim has also not yet been identified publicly.
Bobby Puffin, 74, who resides on the same block where the shooting occurred, reported hearing five or six gunshots shortly before 3 a.m. and realizing immediately that they were not fireworks.
He said –
“Fireworks are usually not rhythmical, and this was bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.”
“That’s why I thought it may have been shots.”
He stated that he has lived on the block for twelve years and that this was the first time a fatal shooting had occurred so near to his residence. In neither case have any arrests been made by police.
Portland’s homicide rate in 2023 currently matches that of the previous year at this stage. In 2022, the city experienced a record-breaking 101 homicides.
