The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
2 fatally stabbed trying to stop anti-Muslim rant
Suspect reported to be ‘known right wing extremist.’
Two men were stabbed to death and one injured Friday on a light-rail train in Portland, Ore., after they tried to intervene when another passenger began “ranting and raving” and shouting anti-Muslim hate speech at two young women, police said.
Police identified the suspect as 35-yearold Jeremy Joseph Christian, of Portland. He was being held without bail Saturday on two counts of aggravated murder, one count of attempted murder, two counts of intimidation in the second degree and one count of possession of a restricted weapon as a felon.
Portland police identified the victims as Ricky John Best, 53, and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23.
A third man, Micah DavidCole Fletcher, 21, was is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
According to witnesses, a man riding an eastbound MAX train early Friday afternoon began yelling what “would best be characterized as hate speech toward a variety of ethnicities and religions,” police said. Some of the slurs were directed at two female passengers, one of whom was wearing a hijab, according to police.
At least two men tried to calm the ranting passenger down, but “they were attacked viciously by the suspect,” Portland police spokesman Pete Simpson said at a news conference.
Namkai Meche, of Portland, died at a local hospital, while Best, a resident of Happy Valley, Ore., was pronounced dead at the scene.
The attack shocked the city. “It’s horrific. There’s no other word to describe what happened today,” Simpson said.
Simpson said that it did not appear that the suspect or the victims had any relationship with one another.
“We don’t know if (the suspect) has mental-health issues or was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or all of the above,” Simpson said. “With this incident, we’re obviously in early stages of the investigation.”
The attacks occurred just as Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, was set to commence at sunset Friday. Simpson said Portland police had already reached out to Muslim organizations, mosques and imams in the community to talk about extra patrols during Ramadan — and that those extra patrols would continue.
“Our thoughts are with the Muslim community,” Simpson said Friday. “As something like this happens, this only instills fear in that community.”
On Saturday, people mourned the stabbing victims and praised them as heroes for their actions. Namkai Meche’s sister, Vajra Alaya-Maitreya, emailed a statement on behalf of their family, saying her brother lived “a joyous and full life.”
“We lost him in a senseless act that brought close to home the insidious rift of prejudice and intolerance that is too familiar, too common. He was resolute in his conduct (and) respect of all people,” she wrote. “In his final act of bravery, he held true to what he believed is the way forward.”
The Portland Mercury newspaper reported that Christian was a “known right wing extremist and white supremacist” who had attempted to assault protesters at local demonstrations.