Thursday 27 August 2020

Seattle cops accuse protesters of attempted murder after they tried to trap officers inside their burning precinct using quick-dry cement

Seattle police claim that protesters attempted to trap them inside a precinct other demonstrators were setting on fire in an 'attempted murder' attempt Monday night. 
Surveillance footage from the incident appears to show protesters stacking up plywood against the East Precinct door as the fire is set nearby.
Cops released images of the door they say was covered in quick-dry cement to keep it shut and had its electronic keypad destroyed, leaving officers forced to smash their way out of the building. 
One person was arrested Monday night in connection with the arson attempt.  
The Seattle Police Department released this image of the door of the East Precinct which protesters had tried to cement shut on Monday night as they set the building on fire
The Seattle Police Department released this image of the door of the East Precinct which protesters had tried to cement shut on Monday night as they set the building on fire
Surveillance images show the protesters setting the fire and blocking off the entrance
Surveillance images show the protesters setting the fire and blocking off the entrance
'That's not a protest, that's not a demonstration that's a directed attack against the police,'  Sgt. Randy Huserik with the Seattle Police Department told KOMO News.
 'Last night was, was clearly a coordinated attack against three Seattle Police facilities.
'They mixed up the Quikrete and then tried to seal off the exits,' he added, claiming that other protesters tried to block the cameras by using umbrellas. 
'I don't think there's a lot of leaps that have to be made about what their intent was last night.' 
A spokesperson also told the station that they believed the attack to be 'attempted murder'. 

The city's police claim that the Seattle Police Officers Guild was also targeted with three incendiary devices on Monday night. One of the devices set the steps of the building alight, they said. 
'What's next? Will there be a loss of life?' said SPOG President Mike Solan. 'I mean, that would be tragic, and this is why these people need to be stopped, immediately.' 
Solan told KIRO 7 it was 'clear domestic terrorism', adding, 'I think what this shows you is that these people are intent on killing police officers.
'We're being held hostage by a group of 100 to 150 people that are bent on destroying this city and hurting police officers'. 
He claimed that the Guild's own surveillance footage caught two individuals 'scouting our location for several hours', as well as showing one the the firebombs being thrown at the stairs. 
The fire can be seen here between the fence as the protesters to the front block the door
The fire can be seen here between the fence as the protesters to the front block the door
Protesters are seen adding more fuel to the fire outside the precinct Monday night
Protesters are seen adding more fuel to the fire outside the precinct Monday night
A protester is seen here to the left bring wood to block off the door so cops were trapped
A protester is seen here to the left bring wood to block off the door so cops were trapped
 Police leaders have condemned city officials, blasting their failure to step in and protect cops from the protests. 
'That's why it's incumbent upon our elected officials to put a stop to this immediately,' he said. 
'How can city leaders be so feckless? It can't just be on the officers. This is an absolute overthrow attempt of some of our government institutions, and police are in the way. They or the officers will get hurt or killed so they can put forth that agenda.
'They're not going to bully us into submission,' he added. 'They're not going to bully this community into submission.'
'The way that the officers were treated here, the things that were said, the stuff that happened, was worse than WTO,' added Sgt. Huserik, comparing the recent protests to the 1999 World Trade Organization Seattle protests. 
'And I never imagined I would say that.'
The Seattle Police Department released this image of the aftermath of the East Precinct fire
The Seattle Police Department released this image of the aftermath of the East Precinct fire
Graffiti was sprayed over the exterior walls of the Seattle Police West Precinct Monday
Graffiti was sprayed over the exterior walls of the Seattle Police West Precinct Monday
Protesters damaged the underground parking entrance at the Seattle Police East Precinct
Protesters damaged the underground parking entrance at the Seattle Police East Precinct
A press release from the Seattle Police Department said that one officer was injured during Monday night's protest. 
The violent scenes began as a direct response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin on Sunday, adding to the weeks of unrest caused by the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. 
Seattle police said that around 250 people gathered to protest Blake's shooting Monday, marching from the East Precinct on Capitol Hill, then to the West Precinct downtown and back to the East Precinct.
A department press release claimed that the crowd smashed parking meters, graffitied, damaged an Amazon Go store, and broke windows of several Starbucks locations on Capitol Hill as they marched.  
Starbucks has made donations to the Seattle Police Foundation. 
At the West Precinct, the crowd spray painted messages such as 'burn me'. 
According to the Seattle Times, there was no visible police presence throughout the march.
When the crowd returned to the East Precinct, the protesters began throwing fireworks at the building and started a fire behind a chain link fence surrounding the precinct, cops said. 
The group was then ordered to disperse. 
A further fire was set on Pike Street before the group left the area.  
Blake, 29, a father of six, was struck from behind at point-blank range in a hail of bullets fired on Sunday by police who were following him with guns drawn as he walked away from officers to his car and opened a door to the vehicle.
Police in riot gear clear a park during clashes with protesters outside the Kenosha County Courthouse late Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis
Police in riot gear clear a park during clashes with protesters outside the Kenosha County Courthouse late Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis
A man stood in front of law enforcement officers as they braced for a clash against protesters on Tuesday night following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin
A man stood in front of law enforcement officers as they braced for a clash against protesters on Tuesday night following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin
Protester is shot while tussling with man holding rifle
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Three of his young sons inside the automobile - aged three, five and eight - witnessed their father being gunned down, according to civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Blake family.
A bystander captured the encounter in video footage that immediately went viral, unleashing outrage over the latest in a long series of instances in which police have been accused of using indiscriminate lethal force against black Americans.
Blake, who had been attempting to break up a quarrel between two women, was struck by multiple gunshots fired at him, all by one officer.  
Crump also revealed Blake was undergoing surgery for his injuries, adding that the bullets severed his spinal cord and shattered his vertebrae. Another attorney said there was also severe damage to organs.
'It's going to take a miracle for Jacob Blake Jr to ever walk again,' Crump said.
Blake remains in hospital after being shot multiple times by the white Kenosha officer on Sunday, prompting a wave of protests around the county. 
On Tuesday night, two people were killed and another injured in Kenosha when protesters clashed with militia groups. 
Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, was arrested on Wednesday in his hometown of Antioch, Illinois and charged with first degree intentional homicide following the shooting death of the two protesters.

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