The suspected arsonist behind a series of ballot box fires could be planning more attacks before the presidential election, police have warned.
This comes after ballot boxes were set on fire in Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington.
Police said Wednesday that the attacker set the fires with firebombs emblazoned with the words “Free Palestine” and “Free Gaza.”
They believe he had a “wealth of experience” in metalworking and welding, said Mike Benner, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau.
Authorities describe the suspect as a white male, between 30 and 40 years old, who is bald or has very short hair.
Authorities were working to extinguish a fire at a polling station in Vancouver, WA, that started early Monday morning. It was one of two fires at two ballot boxes in two separate states.
Police previously said surveillance footage showed the man driving a black or dark-colored Volvo S-60 from 2001 to 2004.
The vehicle did not have a front license plate, but did have a rear license plate with unknown letters or numbers.
Investigators are trying to identify the person responsible and the motive for the suspected arson attacks that destroyed hundreds of ballots at a single location in Vancouver, Washington, on Monday.
The drop box’s fire suppression system did not work as intended.
Greg Kimsey, the elected auditor in Clark County, Washington, which includes Vancouver, said the exact number of ballots destroyed was unknown and that about 475 damaged ballots were removed from the box.
Authorities are trying to determine whether the person who left the devices actually held pro-Palestinian views or was using the message to sow confusion.
Investigators are searching for a suspicious vehicle, a black Volvo S-60, that was captured on security footage leaving the devices behind before they were detonated at the ballot box
Surveillance footage showed the Volvo pulling up to a mailbox in Portland just before nearby security personnel discovered a fire in the mailbox Monday, Benner said.
The early morning fire at the Portland mailbox was quickly extinguished thanks to a fire suppression system in the mailbox and a nearby security guard, police said.
Only three of the ballots inside were damaged.
Election officials planned to search the damaged ballots Wednesday for information about who had cast them, in the hopes that those voters could get replacement ballots.
An image released by Portland police shows the ballot box after a “burning device” was discovered in the ballot box and caused a fire
Ballot boxes set on fire by unknown arsonist in Pacific Northwest on Monday
Kimsey urged voters who left their ballots in the ballot box between Saturday morning and Monday morning to contact his office for a replacement ballot.
Authorities in Portland said Monday that enough firebombing material had been recovered to prove the two fires were connected.
They were also linked to a firebomb left at another ballot box in Vancouver on Oct. 8.