Portland Commissioner Rene Gonzalez beefs up security after threat

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- Portland City Commissioner, and mayoral candidate, Rene Gonzalez has ramped up security after receiving a death threat, according to Gonzalez's office.

Details of the threat, as first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive and confirmed to KOIN 6 News by Gonzalez's Chief of Staff Shah Smith, are not clear.

According to Smith, "enhanced protection" has been placed at Gonzalez's office.

The Portland Police Bureau confirmed the agency is investigating the threat.

The enhanced security for the mayoral candidate comes months after he announced plans to stop riding MAX after claiming he was "accosted" on the train.

“For my entire career, I have been multimodal: A frequent TriMet user and regular cyclist,” Gonzalez said of the MAX incident in January. “Last Friday, I was accosted by a woman on the train. What I experienced was deliberate, unwanted physical contact, followed by criticisms of the city’s policies regarding homelessness.”

The public argument occurred two weeks after a family car caught fire outside Gonzalez’s Sellwood-Moreland home on Jan. 12. The fire is being investigated as a possible arson case. 

“Given the targeted events my family has endured, city security and my family have asked that I stop taking public transit for a period of time,” Gonzalez said. “It is unfortunate, because I have always viewed taking our public transit system as a core part of Portland’s identity.”

This is a developing story.