Jakarta –
More than a dozen people were arrested in Philadelphia, United States of America follow looting stores after a peaceful protest against police violence.
Windows of businesses were smashed and shops looted by “a large group of teenagers” in the city center on Tuesday evening local time, in a spate of violence that had “nothing to do” with the previous day’s demonstrations, Police Commissioner John Stanford said.
“What we experienced tonight was a group of criminal opportunists who took advantage of the situation and attempted to destroy our city,” Stanford said at a press conference, quoted by the news agency. AFPThursday (28/9/2023).
Police made “about 15 to 20 arrests,” he said, and promised they would make more arrests.
About 30 minutes after the protests died down, police began receiving emergency calls at around 20:00 (Wednesday 0000 GMT) about break-ins and looting at stores, including popular yoga brand Lululemon and shoe store Foot Locker.
Protesters took to the streets after a Philadelphia court earlier in the day dismissed murder charges against a police officer who fatally shot 27-year-old motorist Eddie Irizarry. He was shot dead when his car was stopped by police last month, a violent incident captured on bodycam footage.
The looting incident, which Stanford said was carried out by a group of “a hundred or more” people, comes at a time when organized shoplifting and petty theft are on the rise in the United States.
Also read ‘When You Get to Know Xylazine, a Drug That Turns Users into ‘Zombies”:
(ita/ita)
2023-09-28 05:02:26
#Horrified #Shops #Philadelphia #USA #Looted
