PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Dozens of people faced criminal charges after a night of social media-fuelled mayhem in which groups of thieves, apparently working together, smashed their way into stores in several areas of Philadelphia in the United States stuffing plastic bags with merchandise and fleeing, authorities said.
Police said they made at least 52 arrests. Burglary, theft and other counts have been filed so far against at least 30 people, all but three of them adults, according to spokesperson for the Philadelphia district attorney’s office Jane Roh.
The flash mob-style ransacking at dozens of stores including Foot Locker, Lululemon and Apple came after a peaceful protest over a judge’s decision to dismiss murder and other charges against a Philadelphia police officer who shot and killed a driver, Eddie Irizarry, through a rolled-up window. Those doing the ransacking were not affiliated with the protest, Interim Police Commissioner John Stanford said at a news conference, calling the group a bunch of criminal opportunists.
Video on social media showed masked people in hoodies running out of Lululemon with merchandise and police officers grabbing several and tackling them to the sidewalk. Photos of a sporting goods store at a mall showed mannequins and sneakers scattered on the sidewalk.
The thefts and unrest stretched from downtown to northeast and west Philadelphia, leaving smashed display windows and broken storefront coverings.
Police said seven cars were stolen from a lot in the northeast. One of the cars had been recovered as of Wednesday afternoon.
Six businesses in a single retail corridor of North Philadelphia were looted, including three pharmacies, a hair salon, a tax preparation company and a cellphone store, according to the North 22nd Street Business Corridor, a business group.
Pharmacist and store manager at Patriot Pharmacy Benjamin Nochum said it was the third time since 2020 his business had been hit.
“When looters steal from us, what they don’t seem to understand is that they are also stealing from our neighbours,” Nochum said in a statement. ”It makes you question how much longer you can hang on.” People appeared to have organised efforts on social media, according to Stanford, the interim police commissioner.
Police are investigating that there was possibly a caravan of a number of different vehicles that were going from location to location. Video posted to social media showed people hanging out of cars in a shopping centre parking lot, appearing to yell directions to one another. “This destructive and illegal behaviour cannot and will not be tolerated in our city,” said Mayor Jim Kenney, calling it a sickening display of opportunistic criminal activity.
“The administration is working with police to assess which areas of the city may need increased coverage or additional resources,” he said.
