Multiple police vehicles went up in flames in the heart of Philadelphia amid a raging protest over the death of George Floyd, as authorities warned that vandalism and other criminal acts “will not be tolerated.”
The march against police brutality was initially peaceful but descended into rioting and clashes with officers on Saturday afternoon.
Police used batons to drive the crowd away from City Hall, where the violence erupted after some of the protesters threw glass bottles and metal barricades at SWAT officers, according to local media.
In the meantime, several stores were looted in Center City, Philadelphia’s main business district.
The demonstrators, many of whom are Black Lives Matter activists, are demanding justice for George Floyd, a Minnesota local who died while being detained in Minneapolis earlier this week. Floyd, an unarmed black man, was pinned to the ground by a white officer, who pressed his knee onto Floyd’s neck.
The altercation was caught on video, which quickly went viral. Floyd could be heard saying “I can’t breathe,” while being held on the ground.
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