ANDY NGO REPORTS: Portland radical leftist convicted of burning down occupied apartment building in revenge attack against landlord

Following a nine-day trial in Portland, Ore., Garrett Allen Ray Repp was found guilty by the jury of 28 felony counts of first-degree arson, two counts of felony first-degree criminal mischief, 21 counts of recklessly endangering another person and four counts of first-degree animal abuse.

Portland leftist Garrett Allen Ray Repp set the occupied May Apartments building on fire as revenge against his landlord

The 32-year-old used an accelerant to start a fire in his own unit in the May Apartments building on May 16, 2023. Mr. Repp had been evicted from the building and was scheduled to be removed that day by law enforcement due to his noncompliance with the court order. He started the fire about an hour before sheriff’s deputies were scheduled to arrive.

Flames quickly engulfed the occupied May Apartments building in Portland on May 23, 2023. Photos: Portland Fire and Rescue

Over 100 firefighters were required to respond to the fire, which had quickly engulfed the building. Harrowing scenes showed around 20 residents were rescued using ladders. Some had been trapped on fire escapes on the side of the building. At least four pets left behind died in the flames.

The smoke turned the sky black in southwest Portland, forcing the freeway to be shut down for hours due to limited visibility. Two firefighters sustained injuries responding to the arson attack.

Flames blocked some of the fire escapes; firefighters rescue a dog from a ladder. Photos: Portland Fire and Rescue

The 100-year-old building in the Goose Hollow neighborhood was completely destroyed in the fire and later demolished.

During the trial, Mr. Repp’s defense argued that his neighbors could have started the fire to frame him. The jury didn’t buy it, but he was acquitted of one animal cruelty charge after a witness testified that he still hoped his missing cat had escaped the fire.

Mr. Repp’s still-active social media shows a long history of leftist radicalism and antagonism toward this journalist for his reporting on Antifa.

On then-Twitter, Mr. Repp was extremely active in weighing in on the deadly BLM-Antifa riots that crippled Portland for months in 2020.

In July 2020, Mr. Repp responded to a video post by this journalist showing the recurring violence on the federal courthouse in downtown by Antifa.

Mr. Repp responded: “fascist report on protesters.”

Earlier in the same month, he cursed out the Portland Police on Twitter and called for the department to be abolished.

Mr. Repp’s hatred of law enforcement was a recurring theme in many of his posts for years. In November 2022, he posted an image of the graffiti message, “F— the police” on his Instagram.

In a September 2020 post showing police officers making arrests of violent Antifa rioters following an attack on the Portland Police Association union hall, Mr. Repp wrote: “Those Gorillas need to put down the steroids and quit beating their wives.”

The same month, responding to a reaction showing firebombs being thrown at Portland Police, Mr. Repp countered the characterization that political violence had become routine in the city.

“Actually [Portland] it's quite nice,” Mr. Repp posted. “The media is not portraying the situation here correctly, imagine that huh?”

BLM-Antifa rioters held violent direct actions every night in Portland and the surrounding area for more than 120 nights straight.

In a post in mid-September 2020, Mr. Repp defended Antifa directly when responding to someone expressing concern over Antifa violence if Donald Trump won the presidential election in 2020. “I suppose you'll blame antifa for the wind too eh?” he wrote.