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Background: An image of Dustin Rotbart”s vehicle allegedly approaching a group of pedestrians. Inset: Surveillance camera image of Dustin Rotbart allegedly chasing someone while wielding a knife. (Both images via the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office)
A man from Oregon is currently in police custody, facing multiple felony charges after allegedly menacing his neighbors with various weapons.
Dustin Rotbart, aged 40, is being held without bail at the Multnomah County Detention Center. Authorities report that Rotbart has been threatening his neighbors on numerous occasions. His arrest on February 23 followed a disturbance call made by a Portland business, where he was reportedly banging on windows and causing a commotion.
This incident was not isolated. Approximately ten days earlier, on February 14, Rotbart allegedly brandished a knife at the same establishment, threatening customers with remarks like, “Do you want to get stabbed? Do you want to die today?”
Police documents reveal that during the February 14 episode, a witness tried to disarm Rotbart, who was wielding not only a knife but also a stun baton. Surveillance footage purportedly shows the bystander shoving Rotbart, leading to a chase where Rotbart pursued the bystander back to his apartment. The tense situation diffused unexpectedly when Rotbart’s attitude shifted, culminating in a high-five between the two men.
The apartment doorman confirmed the bystander’s account of the events to the authorities.
On Feb. 15, police said residents in another neighborhood reported a man who they said was aiming a bow and arrow at various homes and people. Police later identified that man as Rotbart. Police wrote that Rotbart engaged in similar behavior a week prior, but he was not taken into custody because he was at his own property.
Minutes after the deputy who responded to the bow and arrow call left, dispatchers received another call about a woman who said her neighbor — Rotbart — tried to hit her with his car. Surveillance video from the area allegedly caught Rotbart’s vehicle accelerating toward a group of people.
Police wrote in the charging documents that Rotbart’s erratic and allegedly violent behavior was seemingly driven by “psychedelic mushrooms” and his wife filing for divorce. According to police, Rotbart’s wife kicked him out of their house, and he responded by breaking down the door and throwing a book at her. An AR-15 rifle was reportedly found in his vehicle at the time.
On Jan. 19, police responded to a call about shots fired, allegedly by Rotbart. When police arrived, Rotbart, reportedly high on mushrooms, took his clothes off. Police apparently found mushrooms in the car, and a search of his garage yielded an AR-15 rifle and a revolver. The next day, a judge prohibited Rotbart from possessing deadly weapons, writing in a ruling that there was “clear and convincing evidence that [Rotbart] presents [the] risk of suicide and/or causing physical injury to another person in the immediate or near future.”
KOIN reported that a letter from seven of Rotbart’s neighbors expressed serious concerns about neighborhood safety due to his alleged behavior. The letter read, “Over the past several months, our community has collectively witnessed and experienced a sustained pattern of threatening and intimidating behavior, including but not limited to: Rapidly discharging approximately 20 rounds from a firearm from his house, verbally assaulting a neighbor, and recurring loud parties at early morning hours.”
The neighbors wrote that Rotbart’s alleged behavior caused them to change their everyday routines and keep their children inside.
Rotbart was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on Feb. 23 on three counts of unlawful use of a weapon, three counts of menacing, two counts of burglary, and one count of disorderly conduct. He was ordered during a court hearing on Tuesday to be held without bail. His next court date was scheduled for April 13.