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Police searched the Northeast Portland home this morning of Gabriel Rodriguez-Lee, whose spray-painted tag OMEGA has become a fixture on the city’s buildings, bridges and highways.
During service of their warrant, the Central Precinct’s Neighborhood Response Team found hundreds of iterations of the OMEGA tag, linking him to similar ones throughout Portland. The bureau plans to refer eight felony cases of first-degree criminal mischief and one misdemeanor case of second-degree criminal mischief to the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.
Police began their investigation into Rodriguez-Lee months ago. In October 2023, North Precinct officers arrested him for spray-painting a large OMEGA tag in the 1400 block of North Schmeer Road. Rodriguez-Lee was carrying a firearm at the time. He pleaded guilty to a gun charge and received one year of probation.
Rodriguez-Lee has been one of the most prolific taggers in Portland.
The Oregon Department of Transportation recently awarded a $4 million contract to Portland Graffiti Removal LLC to paint over graffiti along state and federal highways. Those roads are covered in tags, including Rodriguez-Lee’s, because ODOT had run out of graffiti cleanup money before Gov. Tina Kotek pressed the Oregon Legislature for more.