PORTLAND, Ore. — No arrests have been made in the majority of Portland's 61 homicides so far this year.
2021 is already on pace to be the most violent year in Portland's history, likely passing 1987's record of 70 homicides.
According to Portland police, they've made 15 arrests in connection with 49 homicide cases that occurred through the end of June 2021.
KGW could find records detailing only 11 arrests out of the 61 cases so far this year. According to these numbers, no one has been arrested in 70% of the city's homicides.
While KGW has been tracking this year's homicides, we found of those 11 arrests, the vast majority of suspects were either arrested at the scene or within a couple of days or weeks of the crime, which typically means police knew who they were looking for. Only two suspects were arrested more than a month after the victim was found dead.
Portland's 60th homicide, the Aug. 20 death of 30-year-old Johnny Polanco, has drawn significant attention in recent days after an Instagram account re-posted a graphic and disturbing video of his death.
The alleged shooter is seen in the video wearing black pants and a blue shirt. Not much else can be deduced from a grainy still image, but Polanco's family is pleading with the public to come forward about the shooter's identity.
"That video is out there. It's been seen thousands of times. It's been shared so many times and... Portland isn't big. I know somebody knows someone who knows someone in that video. The picture, those faces... are clear as day," Johnny's brother Rob told KGW Tuesday. "I refuse to let him go as a statistic. Like he has a name, his name is Johnny Polanco and I will scream it till the day that someone is put behind bars for it."
On the other hand, Portland's 61st homicide was solved relatively quickly. JaMarie Herring, 25, was shot and killed inside a club in Old Town just before 2 a.m. Sunday. Police say none of the 40 or 50 people who were inside the club at the time of the shooting stayed to interview with officers.
That same day, as mourners gathered outside the club for a vigil around 11 p.m., someone fired dozens of shots at the group. The spray of bullets is heard clearly on a video obtained by KGW News from the nearby Society Hotel's rooftop.
Five people were injured, four of whom were taken to the hospital by private vehicles. No arrests have been made in that shooting, but 22-year-old Rolando Mingledoff Jr. turned himself in to police Monday for Herring's death. He's facing murder and unlawful use of weapon charges.
If you know anything about Polanco's death, or any of the other homicides in Portland, call police at 503-823-HELP (4357) or submit a tip online. You can also text a tip: Text CRIMES (274637) - Type 823HELP, followed by the tip.
