Media reports from Philadelphia said:
Looting and demonstrations continued for a second consecutive night Tuesday in Philadelphia following the fatal police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. in West Philadelphia. Police have made several arrests.
Several hundred troops from the Pennsylvania National Guard have been mobilized in Philadelphia following a night of violent unrest over a fatal police shooting, as city officials predict another bout of rioting.
Wallace Jr., 27, was killed on Monday afternoon by two officers after, police say, he walked towards them and refused to drop the weapon. He was shot 14 times and neither officer was carrying a taser, officials say.
Police say looting along Aramingo Avenue in Philadelphia’s Port Richmond neighborhood has “rapidly gone downhill” Tuesday night and is a “total loss.”
Multiple businesses have already been ransacked.
Police commanders say the situation has “rapidly gone downhill” along Aramingo Ave. — a “total loss,” they say, from looting.
The city is asking residents to stay indoors in West and North Philadelphia, Port Richmond, Kensington and Fishtown.
Protesters continue to face off with officers in riot gear outside the 18th Police District at 55th and Pine and along the 52nd Street commercial corridor.
The Philadelphia Police Department is requesting that all residents in the 12, 16, 18, 19, 24, 25, and 26th Districts remain indoors except when necessary. These areas are experiencing widespread demonstrations that have turned violent with looting.
Chopper 3 was over looting on Aramingo Avenue in the city’s Port Richmond neighborhood around 8:30 p.m.
Looters were seen entering a Foot Locker store.
Widespread looting continued at a nearby Walmart store in Port Richmond. Philadelphia police tweeted a warning to stay away from the area as a crowd of approximately 1,000 people was looting in the area.
A large crowd of appx 1000 was seen looting businesses in the area of Castor and Aramingo. Avoid the area, said Philadelphia Police.
A large police presence was also seen at a Target store in Port Richmond.
In West Philadelphia, Chopper 3 was live over a fire burning in the middle of the street around 10:30 p.m. Cars were seen driving around the fire.
The Pennsylvania National Guard says several hundred members are being deployed to the city at the request of Philadelphia County as the unrest continues.
Thirty police officers were injured during violent protests Monday night, including a female officer who suffered a broken leg after being hit by a car.
Scores of West Philadelphia businesses were looted and a number of stores across Philadelphia have started boarding up their windows Tuesday in anticipation of more looting.
“I do not want to see my city tore down. We do not need that. You are not resolving anything for our family. Don’t do this in the name of my nephew because this is not what he would’ve wanted,” said Rodney Everett, Wallace’s uncle.
Not long after activists gathered for another round of protests on Tuesday night, looters were seen hitting several stores around the city, including a Foot Locker, a Target, a Walmart and a liquor store. Footage of the plunder has circulated across social media.
Philadelphia is going to get ravaged tonight. Already chaos and looting, wrote one netizen.
Groups of individuals were seen milling around a number of businesses, many bringing vehicles to cart away the loot, including one person who showed up with a U-Haul rental moving truck.
Rioters seen clearing out a pharmacy and carrying TVs out of a WalMart.
Some were also filmed leaving the area around a liquor store as they carried armfuls of merchandise.
Another small crowd was seen breaking into a Foot Locker, which also fell victim to looters on Monday night.
The Rite-Aid Pharmacy was ransacked.
Others apparently attempted to gain entry into a Target as well, with footage showing a heavy police presence around the store, whose boarded-up doors and windows appear to have been damaged in a break-in.
Absolute destruction, Philadelphia, wrote another netizen.
Elsewhere in the city, demonstrators confronted police clad in riot gear following a brief protest march, facing down officers while shouting slogans against law enforcement.
Governor Tom Wolf directed the state’s National Guard to deploy to assist local law enforcement “in protecting life, property and the right to peacefully assemble and protest,” said public affairs officer Lieutenant Colonel Keith Hickox said in a statement, giving no specifics for the number of troops mobilized.
The deployment comes after a chaotic night of protests and rioting in Philadelphia over the police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. officers claim was armed during the encounter. The ensuing unrest saw looting, vandalism – including a wave of ATM bombings – clashes with law enforcement that left dozens of officers injured and acts of arson around the city, which continued into Tuesday morning.
Protestors chased a group of riot cops in Philadelphia, wrote a netizen.
Aerial footage taken on Tuesday afternoon showed a heavy police presence in one intersection, with many officers clad in riot helmets.
Monday night’s unrest saw 91 people arrested and left some 30 police officers injured from rocks and other projectiles, as well as another who was “intentionally run over,” according to the Philadelphia Police Department. The apparent vehicle attack was captured on video, which shows a black pick-up truck speeding through a line of officers in the road, leaving a female officer with a broken leg, local media reported.
A series of automated teller machines – up to 10, according to local reports – were also destroyed during the rioting, most of them blown open with explosives.
It is not clear if any cash was taken in the apparent smash-and-grab operations, and no injuries were reported in the blasts. Explosive devices were also reportedly used to attempt to gain entry to at least one building.
Wallace was shot and killed by Philadelphia officers on Monday afternoon after police responded to a call about a man with a knife. Upon arriving at the scene, police claim Wallace was “brandishing” a blade and “waiving it erratically,” with footage of the incident showing the man walking toward officers with their guns drawn as they shout “put the knife down.” He was struck in the shoulder in chest in a volley of gunfire and later died in the hospital from his injuries.
According to the suspect’s father, Wallace struggled with mental health problems and was on medication. “He has mental issues,” said Walter Wallace Sr. “Why you have to gun him down?”
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