RPT - DHS Chief Says Federal Officers Arrested 43 Protesters In Portland Since July 4

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd July, 2020) Acting US Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said in a press conference that federal law enforcement officers have arrested 43 protesters who engaged in violence in Portland, Oregon, since Independence Day.

"The number I have since July 4, which is really when you saw an increased [federal] presence there in Portland, has been 43 federal arrests," Wolf told reporters on Tuesday.

Protests against police brutality and racism have erupted in Portland and other US cities after the death of African American man George Floyd in police custody. However, some of the protests have turned violent, prompting President Donald Trump to send federal law enforcement officers in Portland to maintain law and order - and to protect a federal courthouse that has been the focus of the protests for several weeks.

Wolf described the arrested individuals as "violent anarchists" and estimated there are up to 600 such individuals on any given night.

He said demonstrations in Portland are well organized and participants have been intent on damaging federal courthouses, adding that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking into identifying the organizers.

Portland has lost millions in revenue because downtown businesses have been forced to close amid the violence, Wolf added.

The deployment of federal law enforcement has drawn criticism after reports emerged that the officers, without badges or name tags, have detained protesters in an extrajudicial manner.

Local leaders, including many state legislators, have called on the Trump administration to withdraw the federal law enforcement officers from Portland.