Police say they think man suspected of setting fires at ballot boxes in the Portland, Oregon, area intends to strike again

Investigators in Oregon searching for the person responsible for three fires at ballot drop boxes in the past few weeks – which damaged hundreds of ballots – believe “it is very possible the suspect intends to continue the attacks,” a police spokesperson said Wednesday.

Investigators in Oregon searching for the person responsible for three fires at ballot drop boxes in the past few weeks – which damaged hundreds of ballots – believe “it is very possible the suspect intends to continue the attacks,” a police spokesperson said Wednesday. Fires were set at three ballot boxes in the area in the past three weeks. About 475 damaged ballots were retrieved from a burned ballot box in Vancouver, Washington, and officials are still determining how many were destroyed, according to election officials. An “incendiary device” found attached to the side of a ballot drop box in Portland, Oregon, early Monday damaged ballots, but most were unaffected because of fire suppressant installed in the ballot box. “We believe the suspect has a wealth of experience in metal fabrication and welding,” Portland Police Bureau spokesperson Mike Benner said at a news conference. He described the suspect as a White man between 30 and 40 years old, who is balding or has very short hair. The man has a medium to thin build, he said. Police have said they are looking for a black or dark-colored 2001-2004 Volvo S-60. Investigators have also linked the two incidents to a third ballot box fire on October 8, also in Vancouver, which is just across the Columbia River from Portland.