Portland Train Attack: Help Find Thief Who Stole Hero's Backpack And Wedding Ring

Do you know the man in the picture above? Or in the video? Portland Police say that he stole the backpack and wedding ring belonging to Rick John Best, one of the TriMet heroes from Friday. When two young women were being attacked for being black, Best was one of three men who stepped up to defend women he didn't know.

He was one of two paid with their lives.

Portland Police say that the thied is captured on surveillance video leaving the MAX train carrying Best's black backpack in his right hand.

He is described as a white male with a blonde hair mullet, wearing a black Jordan Brand baseball cap, a black t-shirt featuring an image of Marilyn Monroe and an American flag, black shorts, and black shoes.

He is seen carrying another backpack in his left hand. Police say it's unknown if it his.

Anyone that can identify this suspect or the whereabouts of the backpack and wedding ring is urged to contact Detective Mitch Hergert at mitch.hergert@portlandoregon.gov.

If the suspect in this theft would like to turn himself in to police, he is encouraged to call the Police Non-Emergency Line at 503-823-3333, or go to Central Precinct where officers will accept his surrender.

Images Of Hope As Target Of Hate Meets Hero

Destinee Magnum, a 16-year-old student at David Douglas High School, got on the MAX with her friend last Friday afternoon to head to Clackamas Town Center. Soon after, they were joined on the train by Jeremy Christian, a 35-year-old who the night before had told people on a different train that he wanted to decapitate people.

On this afternoon, Christian saw Magnum and a friend. The friend, who is Muslim, was wearing a hijab, a traditional headdress.

Christian started verbally abusing them in a hate-filled rant that inspired three men to stand up for Magnum and her friend.

Two of those men would die.

On Wednesday, Magnum got to meet the one who survived - 21-year-old Micah Fletcher, a student at Portland State University.

"Finally got a chance to meet one of the angels that saved my daughter'ss life," Magnum's mother, Dyjuana Hudson, posted on Facebook. "Micah is one of the best genuine hearted people you will ever meet.

"Micah is one of a kind and a very strong young man that comes from two beautiful parents that we also had the pleasure of meeting today."

VICTIM'S MESSAGE: REMEMBER THE GIRLS

Earlier in the day, Fletcher had posted a message to Facebook, downplaying what he had done and urging people to focus on Magnum and her friend.

"Imagine that for a second, being the little girl on the MAX. This man is screaming at you, his face is a pile of knives, his body is a gun. Everything about him is cocked, loaded and ready to kill you.

"There’s a history here with this, you can feel this has happened before, the only thing that was different was the names and faces. And then stranger, two strangers, three strangers, come to your aid, they try to help you and that pile of knives just throws itself at them, kills them."

When Fletcher was in high school, who won the annual Verselandia poetry contest for a poem about discrimination against Muslims, maintains he is not a hero. The important thing, he said, are the two girls.

"Yes, two men died," he said on Facebook. "Yes, I was injured. But what we need to remember is that this is about those little girls. We need to remember that this is about them.

"This is about those little girls."

WATCH FLETCHER'S VIDEO

THERE WILL BE PROTESTS

Portland's resolve will be tested this weekend as there will be protests by groups on both sides of the political spectrum.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said the federal government rejected his request to withdraw the permit that had been given to an alt-right group to have a demonstration on Sunday.

The demonstration, organized by Patriot Prayer, is a "free speech rally meant to bring back strength and courage to those who believe in freedom," according to organizers.

"There will be protests and counter-protests this weekend in Portland," Wheeler said Wednesday. "We have reached out to the organizers to call upon them to exercise common sense and to help us keep the peace.

"There will be local and federal law enforcement on the ground to ensure everyone has the right to express their beliefs and to protect everyone's safety," he continued. "I urge everyone participating to reject violence. Our city has seen enough."

The General Services Administration, which controls the land of Terry Schrunk Plaza, says that organizers had done everything they were supposed to in applying for the permit and there was no basis to revoke it.

With the protest going ahead, counter-protesters are expected to be across the street in Chapman Square, setting up a potential showdown.

More than 1,000 people have indicated on Facebook that they will attend a demonstration organized by an umbrella group, Portland Stands United Against Hate.

Other groups have said that they plan to organize against the Schrunk Plaza rally.

Portland Police said they are prepared for Sunday.

"The City of Portland has not issued any permits for a street march and expects that any participants planning to hold a march to follow all laws and remain on sidewalks," said spokesman Pete Simpson.

The law enforcement and public safety partners who will help staff the events include, but are not limited to the following agencies:

• Portland Police Bureau
• Oregon State Police
• Multnomah County Sheriff's Office
• Federal Protective Service
• Department of Homeland Security
• Federal Bureau of Investigation
• United States Attorney's Office
• Multnomah County District Attorney's Office
• Portland Fire & Rescue

"The Federal Protective Service stands with it partners within the Portland community to ensure the peaceful exercise of individual freedoms of demonstration and speech, while preserving and protecting the safety of all individuals on federal property," said Robert Sperling, director of Communications and Engagement for the Federal Protective Service.

On Monday, Wheeler called on organizers to cancel the protest and asked the federal government to withdraw the permit.

"Our city is in mourning, our community's anger is real, and the timing and subject of these events can only exacerbate an already difficult situation," Wheeler said. "Our community remains in shock.

"I am appealing to the organizers of the alt-right demonstrations to cancel the events they have scheduled for June 4th and June 10th," Wheeler continued. "I urge them to ask their supporters to stay away from Portland at this difficult time."

The mayor said that given the rawness of emotions in the city right now, he would like the federal government to withdraw the permit for the June 4 event and not issue one for June 10.

The Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union says Wheeler's approach is a mistake and violates the First Amendment.

"The government cannot revoke or deny a permit based on the viewpoint of the demonstrators," it said in a statement.

"Our hearts are broken, but government censorship is not the answer," the chapter's legal director, Mat dos Santos, said. "We must defend the constitution even when it is uncomfortable."

On Wednesday, Wheeler said that as far as he is concerned, this was a safety issue, not a free speech issue.

"Portland has a proud history of protest," he said. "I am a firm supporter of the First Amendment, no matter the views expressed. I believe we had a case to make about the threats to public safety posed by this rally at this place and at this time.

"My job is to protect the safety of everyone… protesters, counter-protesters, and bystanders alike."

MEANWHILE, A SECOND PROTEST HAS BEEN CANCELED

Organizers of the march scheduled for June 10 — a "March Against Sharia" — now say they won't hold the event in Portland. They are moving it to Seattle.

They say that the mayor's comments has incited people who disagree with them and that holding the march would create a safety risk.

"In order to ensure the safety of those who had planned on attending, we have taken the decision to cancel the Portland March Against Sharia," organizers said on their Facebook page.

CHRISTIAN MAKES FIRST COURT APPEARANCE

"Think I stab motherf------ in the neck for fun? Oh, yeah, you're right I do. I'm a patriot." Those are the words of Jeremy Christian, according to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office. He spoke those words in the back of a police car after being arrested, according to a probable-cause affidavit filed Tuesday in court, where Christian faces charges of murder, attempted murder, and intimidation.

"I told him, you ain't gonna heal punk," Christian told officers he had told one of his victims. "And he still wants to put hands on me. Die bitch...That's what liberalism gets you.

"I hope they all die. I'm gonna say that on the stand. I'm a patriot and I hope everyone I stabbed died."

Christian continued in a similar vein during his brief court appearance Tuesday.

"Free speech or die!" he yelled. "Get out if you don't like free speech! Death to the enemies of America! You call it terrorism! I call it patriotism!"

Sitting in the front row of the courtroom as Christian appeared was Micah Fletcher, a 21-year-old student at Portland State University. He was one of three people who stood up to defend two teenagers, one a Muslim wearing a hijab, when Christian started verbally attacking them. He was the only one who survived.

The probable cause documents — written by Deputy District Attorney Ryan Lufkin based on video and an investigation led by Detective Michele Michaels — paint a picture of a commute home before the holiday weekend that turned deadly.

It was 4:19 Friday afternoon at the Rose Quarter stop of the Green Line MAX train. Christian got on the train headed toward Clackamas Town Center.

Already on the train were two black teenagers, one of whom is Muslim and was wearing a hijab, traditional head wear.

Soon after, witnesses would tell police, Christian started shouting at the girls.

"Get the f--- out!" he shouted. "Pay taxes. Go home, we need Americans here! I don't care if you are ISIS. Free speech or die!"

Christian can be seen taking large drinks from a bladder-style container of purple liquid that would be identified later as sangria, according to Lufkin.

A man — only identified as Mr. Forde — then went up to Christian and tried to get him to calm down.

Forde would say Christian spoke of "decapitating heads" and that the teens were nervous and moved away.

Christian can then be seen on video approaching Taliesin Namkai-Meche, a recent graduate of Reed College who was on his way home from his job and an environmental consultant.

His girlfriend, with whom he was thinking of starting a family, was waiting for him at the home they had recently bought. He would never arrive.

Christian can be seen getting in Namkai-Meche's face.

"Oh, do something, bitch!" Christian yells.

Fletcher then stands up next to Namkai-Meche.

"Do something!" Christian yells as he shoves Fletcher in the chest.

Christian can be seen on video taking a folded knife out of his pocket, concealing the knife in his right hand.

Fletcher pushes Christian away, causing him to stumble.

"Hit me again," Christian tells him as Fletcher keeps telling him to get off the MAX.

Christian is then seen swinging his right hand and stabbing Fletcher in the neck. He then turns and stabs Namkai-Meche in the neck as well. He then stabs Namkai-Meche in the neck a second time.

Ricky Best, a 23-year-veteran of the Army who was on his way home from his job as a supervisor for the city of Portland's Bureau of Development Services, can be seen moving toward the melee.

Christian shoves Best into Namkai-Meche who was sitting in a seat, trying to stop the bleeding from his neck.

He then stabs Best. He stabs Namkai-Meche again.

Fletcher, clutching his neck in an effort to stop the bleeding, makes it off the train where TriMet passengers run to his aid.

Christian grabs his stuff and flees, brandishing the knife at passengers who approach him. He also grabs a bag that had been dropped by the Muslim teen and throws it onto the freeway. Christian is cornered by cops and throws his knife at an officer's car. It is recovered.

He is placed in the car, which has audio and video recording devices.

"I just stabbed a bunch of motherf------ in their neck," he says. "Just a punk ass bunch of motherf------. Get stabbed in your neck if you hate free speech."

Christian then spits.

"I'm tearing out motherf-----'s throats, you think I give a f--- who I spit on?" he says. "I can die in prison a happy man.

"I'm happy now. I can rest easy."

Best died at the scene. Namkai-Meche died at the hospital. Fletcher was told by his doctors that the injury missed being fatal by millimeters.

Christian, who now has a court-appointed lawyer, will be back for a hearing on June 7.

MEMORIAL SET FOR RICK JOHN BEST

Ricky John Best was a 23-year veteran of the Army who retired in 2012. He ran for Clackamas County Commission in 2014 and has spent the past two years as a supervisor for Portland's Bureau of Development Services.

He leaves behind four children: three sons and a daughter, ages 19, 17, 15, and 12. BDS's interim director, Rebecca Esau, has set up a scholarship fund to help the children. Since it was started, the fund has received $13,279 from 129 people.

"With the loss of their father, it is important that we, his friends, colleagues, and the broader community who are touched by his sacrifice, step in to assist the family in financially supporting the children's college education," Esau writes on the GoFundMe Page.

"This fund will be used to help pay for college tuition and expenses for Rick's four children."

Best's oldest son told KATU that his dad was always smiling. "After serving in the military, he used to say, 'Hey, I'm not getting shot, so why shouldn't I smile?'"

There will be a memorial for him on Monday.

NAMKAI-MECHE'S MOTHER PLEADS WITH TRUMP

The mother of the other man murdered while defending the teens is pleading with President Trump to take action against hatred.

"You have said that you will be president for all Americans," Asha Deliverance, whose son Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche was killed on Friday, wrote in an open letter to the president she posted on her Facebook page. "So, I ask you Mr. President to take action at this time. Your words and actions are meaningful, here in America and throughout the world.

"Please encourage all Americans to protect and watch out for one another. Please condemn any acts of violence, which result directly from hate speech & hate groups. I am praying you will use your leadership to do so."

Deliverance writes that her son "died a hero. He was just 23, a year out of college with a degree in economics, working, had just bought his first home and was thinking about starting a family.

"Our family grieves, but we are proud that through his selfless action he, along with the other two men, has changed the world, when in the face of hate he did not hesitate to act with love."

HELPING THE FAMILIES

Meanwhile, fundraising continues for the victims of Friday's incident and their families.

The page set up by Portland restaurateur Nick Zukin to help the families of the two men who were killed has now raised $541,330 from 10,523 people.

A page set up to help Fletcher, who survived, has raised $256,430 from 7,653 people.

A page set up to help the two girls who were the target of the vitriol that inspired three men to intervene has raised $77,035 from 2,279 people.

And a page set up by the Muslim community to help the families of the three stabbing victims has raised $534,786 from 10,303 people.

Photos Dyjuana Hudson via Facebook/Colin Miner