PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A 22-year-old man faces a felony charge after allegedly selling his election ballot through OfferUp and completing the deal in the parking lot of a Fred Meyer store in North Portland.
Josiah Samuel Bridges was arrested October 21 by special agents with the Oregon Department of Justice after selling his ballot to an undercover officer in the Fred Meyer parking lot at 6850 N. Lombard Street, authorities said.
Special agents and Portland police collaborated on the case, officials said, after they learned of someone offering to sell his ballot for $200 through OfferUp. The undercover agent arranged to meet Bridges at the parking lot and “negotiated the price down to $115,” the affidavit states.
Around 5 p.m. that day, Bridges allegedly met the “buyer” at the arranged time and place. The “buyer” gave Bridges $120 in cash and Bridges provided $5 in change, officials said.
Other special agents who watched the transaction then approached Bridges as he walked away and arrested him without incident.
Bridges is now charged with a Class C Felony for the manufacture, use, sale, purchase of election material. If convicted he faces a maximum of 5 years in prison.