Looters have targeted high-end stores in Manhattan as protests across America take a destructive turn, with stores ransacked and buildings and cars set on fire.
Mobs of people rampaged down the sidewalks early Monday morning, smashing into numerous luxury shops to steal merchandise. Hundreds of people created chaos in the area, breaking into Rolex, Chanel and Prada boutiques as well as clothing and electronics stores.
It came after demonstrators in downtown Brooklyn and parts of Manhattan earlier pelted police officers with objects and set fires. Protests across America took a destructive turn on Sunday night, with buildings and cars set on fire near the White House. Washington police said they were responding to multiple fires that were “intentionally set” around the city.
Colombia Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a curfew from 11pm to 6am local time, with the National Guard activated to assist police in ensuring these restrictions are met.
It comes as protests erupted in at least 30 US cities over the death of unarmed black man George Floyd at the hands of police. Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was fatally arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last week. A video posted on social media of the incident allegedly showed white police officer Derek Chauvin pushing down on his neck with his knee as he yelled, "I can't breathe".
Chauvin was charged with third degree murder, and three other officers present were fired.
Our live coverage has finished for the evening, here's how a violent and destructive night played out in the US.
Updates
Chanel, Versace and other Manhattan stores looted
Dozens of suspected looters were arrested in Manhattan's Soho earlyMonday morning after several high-end boutiques including Chanel and Versace were broken into.
Mobs of people rampaged down the sidewalks, smashing into numerous luxury shops to steal merchandise.
Hundreds of people created chaos in the area, breaking into Rolex, Chanel and Prada boutiques as well as clothing and electronics stores.
A man was also shot but it was not immediately clear if the shooting was related to the surrounding looting, the New York Post reported.
It came after demonstrators in downtown Brooklyn and parts of Manhattan earlier pelted officers with objects and set fires.
The looting in SoHo Is quite an elaborate scheme. it’s a complicated web of cars with out-of-state plates, the use of @Revel scooters, @CitiBikeNYC’s and @Uber’s to get away. But most that i’ve observed have been waking away with the goods in hand past cops. pic.twitter.com/X1I4r1cHQo
Officers charged into crowds to clear streets, sending people sprawling and battering bystanders who couldn’t get out of the way.
Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier rejected the idea of a curfew, like those adopted in other major US cities.
Since the protests began days ago, at least 790 people have been arrested, 33 officers have been injured and 27 police vehicles have been damaged or destroyed, police said. There were no major injuries reported.
A man who allegedly wielded a bow and arrow against protesters in Salt Lake City is expected to be charged by police.
According to local news station KSL-TV, the man was detained after the incident, which took place after 6:00pm on Saturday (local time).
Footage posted on Twitter shows him stepping out of his car and loading the bow and arrow before appearing to point it into the crowd. He was quickly disarmed by those nearby and later appeared on TV with a bloodied face.
Police said they intend to file charges and have asked witnesses to come forward.
Former NBA star Michael Jordan has released a statement say he is “deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry” about George Floyde and the killings of black people at the hands of police.
“I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry,” the current Charlotte Hornets owner said in the statement posted on social media.
“I see and feel everyone’s pain, outrage and frustration. I stand with those who are calling out the ingrained racism and violence toward people of color in our country. We have had enough.
“I don’t have the answers, but our collective voices show strength and the inability to be divided by others.
“My heart goes out to the family of George Floyd and to the countless others whose lives have been brutally and senselessly taken through acts of racism and injustice.”
The move sparked debate about whether it was actually that unusual, with some saying it never happened and others suggesting it was a regular occurrence.
The Guardian reported that the lights were only ever turned off when a President died.
I have never seen this in my entire life. I lived in DC and worked at a restaurant two blocks from here and rode my bike by the White House every night at around 2am. The lights were always on. This absolutely sums up this administration. Nobody’s home. https://t.co/Uk2rhxE1Wjpic.twitter.com/ACjZtaaRPR
I lived in Washington for almost 5 years and saw this quite a lot. The lights at the White House went out at 11pm almost every night… https://t.co/HO1Qs3vtEe
The mayor of New York City’s own daughter is one of the nearly 790 people who have been arrested in the city since protests over the death of George Floyd began last week.
A law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter tells The Associated Press that 25-year-old Chiara de Blasio was arrested Saturday night.
An arrest report obtained by The New York Post says she refused to leave a Manhattan street ordered cleared by officers because people were throwing things.
Chiara de Blasio, who is black, was later given a court summons and released.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, who is white, didn’t mention the arrest in his Sunday press briefing. City Hall spokespeople didn’t have an immediate comment.
– AP
Chiara de Blasio (front) with her brother and father. Picture: Mark Lennihan/AP.
Tear gas and rubber bullets fired at protesters around the US
Washington wasn't the only city where protesters took to the streets.
Police in Portland deployed tear gas to disperse a large crowd late Sunday night after authorities said projectiles were thrown at officers.
Earlier, police said protesters smashed windows at the federal courthouse, and authorities on loudspeakers declared the gathering a civil disturbance.
Thousands of people marched throughout Oregon’s largest city on Sunday.
Protesters march along a street in Portland, Maine on Sunday. Picture: Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald via AP
In Charlotte, North Carolina, more than 15 people were arrested on Sunday night.
Police said four demonstrators were arrested for assaulting officers, including one for hitting an officer with a rock. Three others were arrested on illegal weapon charges, police said.
In Kansas City, Missouri, police fired tear gas into the crowd after some demonstrators began lobbing water bottles and rocks. Two television station news vehicles were smashed and set on fire.
Police declared the scene an “unlawful assembly” and said the area was clear of activity by midnight.
Police also fired rubber bullets and pepper spray at protesters in Austin, Texas.
Unlike Dallas, where police made dozens of arrests to enforce a downtown curfew, Austin didn't have a curfew and demonstrators roamed downtown from the police station to the state Capitol several blocks away for nearly 10 hours.
The crowd ebbed and flowed from a few thousand to a few hundred.
Police faced off against protesters who blocked Interstate 35 near the Austin Police Department headquarters earlier on Sunday. Picture: Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP
Meanwhile, protesters defying a Denver curfew had tear gas and projectiles fired on them.
Dozens of demonstrators, some throwing fireworks, taunted police and pushed dumpsters onto Colfax Avenue, a major road.
Protests held in downtown Phoenix appeared to be peaceful, according to local media reports.
“Listen to me: We are not ending in violence. I refuse to end in violence,” activist Armonee Jackson told the crowd.
At least 4,100 people have been arrested over days of protests across the country since George Floyd’s death Monday, according to a tally compiled by The Associated Press.
Arrests ranged from thefts to blocking highways and breaking curfew.
– AP
Cars set on fire, buildings vandalised and looted
CBS journalist Fin Gomez has posted a number of tweets showing the mayhem in the streets around the White House.
Footage shows people smashing the windows of the AFL-CIO building, located a block away from the White House.
The AFL-CIO building was vandalized. Crowd smashed windows and broke into the lobby just before the 11pm curfew. The HQ building located just a block from Lafayette Square & the White House. @CBSNewspic.twitter.com/vFXjbixHBz
AP reported that protesters broke into a branch of Capital Bank, and empty jewelry boxes could be seen scattered on the sidewalk outside a Mervis Diamonds store.
After protesters broke into a La Colombe coffee shop, someone in the crowd yelled, “What are you looting a coffee shop for? You’re messing up the whole message.”
Photos have also emerged of protesters burning the US flag close to the White House.
According to AP, police fired tear gas and stun grenades into a crowd of more than 1,000 chanting protesters in Lafayette Square, a park across the street from the White House.
The crowd ran away and piled up road signs and plastic barriers to light a raging fire in a nearby street. Some pulled an American flag from a building and threw it into the blaze.
A building in the park with bathrooms and a maintenance office went up in flames and people broke into banks and jewelry stores.
As demonstrations persisted past curfew, Washington police said they were responding to multiple fires set around the capital.
The entire Washington DC National Guard – roughly 1,700 soldiers – has been called in to help control the protests, according to two Defense Department officials who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorised to publicly discuss the matter.
Protesters jump on a street sign at a protest near the White House. Picture: Roberto Schmidt/AFP
A protester throws a US flag into a burning barricade near the White House. Picture: Roberto Schmidt/AFP
A protester raises a fist near a fire outside the White House. Picture: Samuel Corum/AFP
Fires rage around White House as 11pm curfew passes
As demonstrations continued past an 11pm curfew, Washington police said they were responding to multiple fires that were “intentionally set” around the city.
One was at St John’s Episcopal Church, which is located from across Lafayette Square, which is opposite the White House, AP reported.
The church says every president beginning with James Madison, “until the present,” has attended a service at the church, giving it the nickname, “the church of presidents.”
The first services at the church were held in 1816, according to its website.
Protesters just pulled the American flag off of St John Church parish house outside the WH and burned it pic.twitter.com/ZqRYGLItuZ
Earlier, protesters jumped the barriers at Lafayette Square, which is a park across from the White House.
I will never forget this moment. A young black man jumped the gated barrier in Lafayette Park near the White House. Then a white girl jumped the barrier and put herself between the young man & US Park Police to protect him. #historicmoment May 31, 2020 #GeorgeFloydProtest@msnbchttps://t.co/4xrGNqo9Mk
A building near the White House has been set on fire.
There were reports the building was a guardhouse but the man who posted the footage later admitted he wasn't sure what the building was.
"Let me be clear – I don’t know what the burning building was that is some hundred yards from the White House, but it appears to be a security related building," Eric Angelo wrote.
"I was being tear gassed so y’all will have to forgive me for lacking certainty."
Some suggested the building was actually a public bathroom in Lafayette Square, a park across the street from the White House. AFP later reported that a maintenance building in the park had been set on fire.
Footage posted to Twitter showed tear gas being thrown on protesters as flames flickered in the background.
Let me be clear – I don’t know what the burning building was that is some hundred yards from the White House, but it appears to be a security related building. I was being tear gassed so y’all will have to forgive me for lacking certainty.
Several fires have been set in America’s capital as hundreds of protesters clash with police outside the White House.
Multiple fires were blazing near the White House as rallies escalated ahead of curfew restrictions.
Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a curfew from 11pm to 6am local time, with the National Guard activated to assist police in ensuring these restrictions are met.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
AP Photo/Evan Vucci
Footage showed numerous fires burning the near White House, including a small building set on fire at Lafayette Square and another in front of the historic St John’s Church.
At one point, protesters reportedly crowded around a fire someone had set, cheering and chanting.
It came after protesters were forced to move on from Lafayette Square, where they had gathered demanding more action following the killing of George Floyd. Police used tear gas to disperse the crowds.
On-the-ground reports describe the scene as “descending into chaos in the last twenty minutes” as the tear gas was fired. Fireworks were hurled at police by the protesters in response.
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