Rioters in Seattle on Saturday set fire to a construction site for a King County juvenile detention facility and courthouse. They later hurled explosives and other projectiles at police officers.
The planned demonstration, organized by a group pushing to abolish the Seattle Police Department, prompted concerns of violence. A number of business owners boarded up their stores in the hopes of protecting them.
After gathering in the Capitol Hill neighborhood around 1 p.m.—where the so-called autonomous zone was located—the crowd traveled about 10 blocks south to 12th Avenue and Jefferson Street and torched the construction site.
A group of approximately a dozen people was responsible for the fire, according to the Seattle Police Department. Firefighters responded and put the flames out.
The group then headed north, smashing windows at businesses as they traveled along 12th Avenue.
Once back in Capitol Hill, rioters spray painted the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct and attempted to disable cameras and damage fencing that was erected around the building to try to protect it. Officers also noticed smoke in the building lobby, indicating someone set fire to the precinct, and found possible explosive damage to walls inside. Arson and bomb detectives were investigating.
Due to the ongoing damage and public safety risks, police declared a riot around 5 p.m. and began using crowd control measures like blast balls and OC spray—but not tear gas—to try to disperse the crowd.
Rioters refused to disperse and continued smashing windows and damaging buildings in the area. They also hurled rocks, mortars, explosives, and other projectiles, according to the police and video footage from the scene.
Forty-five people were arrested for assaulting officers, obstruction, and failure to disperse, according to the Seattle Police Department.
As of 10pm: Police have made 45 arrests in connection with today’s riot in the East Precinct. 21 officers sustained injuries after being struck by bricks, rocks mortars/other explosives. Most officers were able to return to duty. One was treated at a hospital for a knee injury.
— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) July 26, 2020
Twenty-one officers were injured during the mayhem, including one who was rushed to the hospital with a leg injury caused by an explosive.
Federal officers didn’t appear to be on the scene. A limited number were deployed to Seattle to help protect federal buildings.
The Seattle demonstration, which turned into a riot, was organized in support of people in Portland, who have rioted on a nightly basis since late May.
From The Epoch Times