Portland police are searching for a Black Lives Matter protester who took a running kick at the head of a defenseless man, knocking him out after a group dragged the victim from his truck and made him sit in the street.
The 25-year-old suspect was identified Tuesday as Marquise Love, and a manhunt is under way after police tried unsuccessfully to contact him and left messages telling him to turn himself in. Social media users previously identified Love and posted his personal information – though police have urged members of the public not to contact Love because it could be dangerous and said details circulating on social media may be false.
The victim, Adam Haner, may have been trying to help a transgender woman who was being robbed when the incident began, police said. The same group involved in the robbery then allegedly assaulted Haner and his female companion. Haner tried to drive away, but he crashed as the group chased him down, and was dragged from his white pickup and struck by multiple assailants while others rifled through his belongings. One man then kicked Haner in the head, leaving him unconscious in the street.
BREAKING: After causing a white man to crash his truck in downtown Portland, BLM militants then beat the man and knock him unconscious
The suspect seen on social media videos of the attack wore a black vest with “security” written across the front. Love’s Facebook page, since deleted, listed him as an armed security guard at Portland International Airport. He wore a similar black security vest in a Facebook photo.
More photos of Marquise "Keese" Lee Love, the BLM rioter allegedly filmed bloodying a driver & knocking him unconscious w/a running kick to the head. Love has so far not been identified or accused by Portland Police. #PortlandRiots#BlackLivesMatter
Haner was hospitalized but has since been released and is recovering from his injuries. A GoFundMe page set up by his brother, Brian Haner, had raised more than $80,000 as of Tuesday evening.
Is this the man? If so, will Portland International Airport have anything to say? Where is the accountability? pic.twitter.com/1dxp1EQmMF
Social media users complained prior to Tuesday’s statement by Portland police that no one was being held accountable for the assault. “It’s been over 24 hours since a BLM activist attempted to murder an innocent man,” radio host Matt Walsh said. “The assailant still has not been arrested. We still have not been given any update on the condition of the victim. No major media outlet has even told us the name of either man involved.”
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler was silent about the high-profile attack until Monday night, when he said, “I denounce all violence, including the assaults that were filmed and posted to social media last night.”
The city’s police chief, Chuck Lovell, said an investigation into the assault is ongoing, however.
“The Portland Police Bureau is taking this assault and other incidents of violence extremely seriously.” he said. “Our detectives continue to investigate this assault as well as other acts of violence directed toward protesters, but we need more than just videos from social media.”
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