The Portland Police Bureau is seeking the public’s help in identifying a man suspected of assaulting a father at a 7-Eleven convenience store in the Centennial neighborhood on July 3.
The man who was attacked and his family stopped at the convenience store, near the intersection of Southeast 148th Avenue and Stark Street, around 11 p.m. The father saw a man smoking what he suspected was fentanyl in front of his children and confronted the individual, according to the bureau’s statement on the incident.
In response, the man punched the father in the face, which caused him to lose consciousness and fall to the pavement, police said. The father sustained a broken nose and a broken cheekbone in the assault, as well as brain bleeds that left him in a week-long coma, police said.
The man who threw the punch fled the scene, pulling a canvas wagon, before police arrived, according to the police bureau.
Portland Police officials said they believe the man suspected of the assault is a 22- to 29-year-old white man standing about 6′3″ tall. He has a slim build, weighing approximately 160 pounds, and there are visible tattoos extending from his left hand up to his elbow. He was last seen wearing a blue-plaid shirt, beige pants, a camo baseball cap and black shoes, according to the police statement.
Anyone with information about the man’s identity or whereabouts is asked to contact Det. Matt Brown at matthew.brown@police.portlandoregon.gov. People can also submit an anonymous tip to the bureau by emailing crimetips@police.portlandoregon.gov.
