Conservative journalist Nick Sortor was reportedly arrested late Thursday by Portland police, even as authorities appeared to ignore violent anti-ICE rioters who had once again converged on a federal immigration facility in the city.
The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) charged Sortor with disorderly conduct after he intervened when demonstrators set fire to an American flag outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building. According to Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin, “Last night at the Portland ICE building, we witnessed anti-ICE protesters burning an American flag. @nicksortor then grabbed it from them, put the flames out, and took away what was left of the flag.”
Despite video evidence showing Sortor surrounded and threatened by demonstrators, it was the journalist who ended up in custody. “We had seen Nick get surrounded and verbally threatened by protesters the previous night. He posted on X that he felt Portland PD would arrest him if he tried to defend himself,” Melugin said.
Released later that evening, Sortor denounced the city as lawless and unsafe. “Portland is a [f——] third world hellhole. If I defend myself, I will be the one who gets arrested. Not the assailant. Antifa is in full control out here. President Trump NEEDS to step in,” he wrote.
The arrest came just days after another journalist, Katie Daviscourt of The Post-Millennial, was assaulted by an Antifa rioter. Despite Daviscourt identifying her attacker to police, officers reportedly refused to take the suspect into custody.
Hey @PortlandPolice: you made a big freaking mistake.
You PROVED what we’ve all been saying for years: you’re CORRUPT and CONTROLLED by vioIent Antifa thugs who terrorize the streets
You thought arresting me would make me shut up and go away. You couldn’t have been more wrong.… pic.twitter.com/Dz8oJ3V8NP
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) October 3, 2025
Following Sortor’s release, Attorney General Pam Bondi personally called him to announce that the Department of Justice would investigate the incident. “BREAKING: Attorney General Pam Bondi has ORDERED a full investigation, led by Asst. AG Harmeet Dhillon, of the Portland Police Bureau, following my wrongful arrest last night, Bondi confirmed to me,” Sortor posted. “The Trump DOJ WILL NOT allow Portland Police to continue to do the bidding of Antifa.”
Inside the ICE facility, officials voiced similar frustration with city leaders who have directed local police to stand down. “So the Portland Police Bureau is really under guidance from the mayor and the city council … they’re not really supposed to respond to this building,” said Cammila Wamsley, Portland’s top ICE official, in an interview with Melugin. “There have been folks that have been assaulted right down here on the street, even across the street. And it takes Portland police a while to respond or sometimes they don’t respond at all, which is unfortunate because … people here deserve to be protected by the police.”
That vacuum has led to violent clashes outside the facility. Melugin described one confrontation in which a pro-ICE supporter and an anti-ICE protester fought on the sidewalk. The anti-ICE protester, he reported, was left unconscious after being struck. “ZERO PORTLAND PD HERE,” he wrote.
President Donald Trump, who has long warned about Antifa’s grip on Portland, declared the group a domestic terrorist organization last month.
Antifa has a history of violent activity in the city, from the riots following the death of George Floyd to the brutal 2019 assault on journalist Andy Ngo.
For conservatives, Sortor’s arrest is another example of a city where law enforcement bends to mob rule — punishing those who defend themselves or speak against Antifa, while allowing violent radicals to operate unchecked.
[READ MORE: White House Warns of ‘Thousands’ of Layoffs as Democrats Hold Line on Shutdown]
About Post Author
