Election ballot drop boxes in Washington and Oregon were set on fire Monday morning by a group or person who left a note at the crime scenes that reads, “ALL DROP BOXES WILL BURN. FREE GAZA.”
Breaking: I can exclusively report that a handwritten note declaring “ALL DROP BOXES WILL BURN. FREE GAZA" was discovered in a Clark County, WA ballot drop box shortly after hundreds of ballots were burned in WA & OR through the use of incendiary devices. https://t.co/5upwn3G5ot
— Andy Ngo 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) October 30, 2024
Police in both states found incendiary devices in the ballot boxes where hundreds of ballots were destroyed.
According to The New York Times, two police officials confirmed the presence of the notes and said a third note with the same message was found in relation to a third attempted arson attack in Vancouver earlier this month.
While the messages signal the person or people behind the arson are politically left-wing, police are still investigating the matter to ensure the acts weren’t meant to be blamed on the pro-Palestine movement.
A spokesman for the Portland Police Department said on Monday, “There was enough evidence collected at all three scenes that lead us to believe that all three incidents are connected, and we cannot get into more detail.”
NYT reports, “Officials said at a news conference that they believed all three events were linked. They later released surveillance images of a suspect vehicle, asking for the public’s help in identifying the person driving a dark, early 2000s Volvo.”
The FBI is investigating the election-related incidents.