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Several juveniles reportedly looted a number of stores in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. This came after citizens gathered on the streets in protest after former police officer, Mark Dial was cleared of murder charges after the alleged shooting and killing of Eddie Irizarry during a traffic stop. The protests turned ugly as a group of mostly juveniles used it as an opportunity to loot multiple stores across Philadephia.
The Police confirmed that the alleged looting was not related to the protests, which ended before the teens entered multiple stores in the city. Netizens were disgusted and saddened by the news and took to the comments section of The Shade Room's Instagram post to react to the same.
"They don't even care about the real issue at hand" - Netizens react as juveniles allegedly loot stores in Philadelphia
Peaceful protests filled the streets of Philadelphia as citizens expressed their dissatisfaction regarding charges being dropped against Philadelphia police officer, Mark Dial, who was accused of allegedly murdering Eddie Irizarry during a traffic stop. Individuals let their opinions be heard during a march from City Hall to the Criminal Justice Center.
However, as the protests ended, hundreds of juveniles flooded the city and reportedly went on a looting spree at multiple stores. Some of the stores allegedly hit by the teens were an Apple outlet in Center City, a Footlocker store, a Lululemon location, and a northeast Philadelphia Target, among others. Instagram influencer, Meatball live-streamed the looting, before getting arrested.
Although witnesses claimed that over 100 juveniles were involved in the incident, Philadephia police arrested 20 people and recovered two firearms, as per ABC News. Authorities stated that the juvenile looters were not related to the protests and called them "criminal opportunists" who used the protest as a cover. As per NBC News, Acting Police Commissioner, John Stanford stated:
"This had nothing to do with the protests. What we had tonight was a bunch of criminal opportunists take advantage of a situation and make an attempt to destroy our city. It's not going to be tolerated."
Netizens were extremely agitated by the news and took to the comments section of The Shade Room's post to react to the same. People believed that the juveniles were disrespectful to the issue at hand and were saddened at the effect their behavior may have.
Some users talked about the relationship between poverty and such behavior while others wondered why the juveniles stole iPhones from the Apple store as most of the devices on display were useless and every phone was locked and could be tracked.
Mark Dial reportedly shot Eddie Irizarry six times at close range
On Tuesday, September 26, a Philadelphia Judge dropped the murder charges against former police officer, Mark Dial. The latter was accused of murdering 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry during a traffic stop on August 14, 2023. The charges were dropped due to a lack of evidence and the shooting was deemed to be justifiable, as per NBC News.
Bodycam and surveillance footage of the incident was released after Dial's arrest. On August 14, Mark Dial and his partner were following Eddie Irizarry's vehicle as he was driving erratically on B Street and Erie Avenue in Philadelphia. Once the car came to a halt both officers exited their vehicle and approached Irizarry's vehicle with their guns out.
As Mark Dial rushed to the driver's side of the car, Irizarry rolled up his windows and could reportedly be seen holding a small pocket knife. However, Dial shouted, "I'll f**king shoot you" and shot Izarry six times as the car window shattered.
Mark then, opened the door and pointed the gun at an unresponsive and dying Irizarry while asking him to put his hands up, which he was unable to do. Both officers then, dragged the man out of the car before Mark transported Irizarry to the Temple Hospital.
Eddie Irizarry passed away due to multiple gunshot wounds and Officer Mark Dial was arrested on September 8. Dial was charged with murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment of another person, and official oppression. However, these charges were dropped on Tuesday, leading to protests.
