More than 100 masked teens ransack, loot Philadelphia stores, police say

PHILADELPHIA CREAM — Groups of teenagers invaded stores in Philadelphia’s Central City on Tuesday, stuffing plastic bags with merchandise and running away, although police made several arrests, authorities and witnesses said.

An Apple Store was hit around 8 p.m. and police chased fleeing teens, recovering dropped iPhones and a “stack of iPads” at one location, a police statement said.

More than 100 people, apparently teenagers, looted a Lululemon store, NBC10 Philadelphia reported, citing a police officer.

Video posted to social media showed masked people wearing hoodies leaving Lululemon and police grabbing several and tackling them to the sidewalk, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, but CBS Philadelphia said a security guard was assaulted at the Foot Locker.

The flash mob-style rampage followed an earlier peaceful protest against a judge’s decision Tuesday to dismiss murder and other charges against a Philadelphia police officer who shot a driver, Eddie Irizarry, through a rolled up window.

However, several police commanders said the ransacking of the store was not related to previous protests, CBS Philadelphia reported.

The thefts also occurred on the same day that Target announced the closure of nine stores in four states, including one in New York’s East Harlem neighborhood and three in the San Francisco Bay Area, saying the theft and organized retail crime threatened security. of its workers and customers.