PORTLAND (TIP): An Indian American is among seven people who have been arrested and face federal charges for their roles in weekend riots at the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse in Portland, Acting Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Eben Roberts and U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced July 7.
According to court documents, since May 26, 2020, protests in downtown Portland have regularly been followed by nightly criminal activity including assaults on law enforcement officers, destruction of property, looting, arson, and vandalism.
Shant Singh Ahuja, 28, of Oceanside, California, is charged with destruction of federal property. On July 4, 2020, Ahuja is accused of willfully destroying a closed-circuit video camera mounted on the exterior of the Hatfield Courthouse.
The Hatfield Federal Courthouse has been a repeated target of vandalism, sustaining extensive damage. U.S. Marshals Service deputies and officers from the Federal Protective Service, HSI and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) working to protect the courthouse have been subjected to threats; aerial fireworks including mortars; high intensity lasers targeting officers’ eyes; thrown rocks, bottles, and balloons filled with paint from demonstrators while performing their duties.