PORTLAND, Ore. — A guest at an Airbnb is facing an attempted murder charge after he shot the property owner through a door, critically injuring her, according to Portland police.
Police said 21-year-old Caveion Lett was in a room at the short-term rental near Northeast Grand Avenue and Going Street when the Airbnb host, a woman, tried to speak with him Wednesday night.
As she was attempting to contact him, police said Lett fired multiple rounds from a 9mm handgun through the door. One of those rounds struck the victim in the chest — causing critical, life-threatening injuries, police said.
Paramedics rushed the woman to the hospital and police said she is expected to survive.
Meanwhile, detectives surrounded the home and began communicating with the suspect, who refused to come out. Following a lengthy negotiation, police said Lett agreed to surrender and was taken into custody.
Lett was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on charges of attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon.
Airbnb released a statement on Thursday addressing the shooting:
“We are horrified by the gun violence and deeply relieved that our Host is in recovery. We take the safety of our Community incredibly seriously, and our team is working as quickly as possible to support the Host and to investigate what happened. This guest has been banned from Airbnb as we continue to investigate.”
The shooting comes during the worst period of gun violence Portland has seen in recent history. Coming off a year of record shootings and homicides in 2021, there has already been about three-dozen people killed and more than 150 people injured in shootings this year.
Earlier this week, Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell announced the police bureau would be shuffling resources to assign more officers to homicide investigations amid the spiking in gun violence and staffing challenges, as the city struggles to hire new officers.