(CNN) – The Minneapolis police chief acknowledged Thursday that his department contributed to a “hope deficit” in the city after the George Floyd’s death, while he and other officials called for protesters to calm down after a night of destructive protests.
“I absolutely regret all the pain, devastation and trauma that the death of Mr. Floyd has left in his family, his loved ones, in Minneapolis and the world,” said Medaria Arradondo, the city’s chief of police, during a conference of press.
“I know that there is currently a hope deficit in our city … and I know that our department has contributed to that deficit as a whole,” added Arradondo.
But he also maintained that he cannot allow the looting, fires and commercial damage that arose in the middle of the street protests during the night of this Wednesday.
For his part, the city’s mayor reported that he requested state assistance and allowed Arradondo to use resources from other jurisdictions.
“We must face our failures with humility and hope. We must restore peace so that we can do this hard work together, ”said Mayor Jacob Frey.
Fury has increased in Minneapolis over the death of Floyd, a black man who lost his life Monday (May 25) after pleading for help while a police officer pinned him – unarmed and handcuffed – to the ground.
By Wednesday night, the second day of protests in Minneapolis ended with a day of riots and looting in the south of the city center, with people tearing up shops and setting businesses and other buildings on fire.
One of Floyd’s brothers cried on Thursday morning, noting that his family wants the protests to be peaceful, but insisted that people fight against seeing another black man die after a police incident, which in this case, it was related to passing a allegedly counterfeited $ 20 bill in a store.
“I want everyone to be peaceful right now, but people are torn and hurt, because they are tired of watching black men die,” said Philonise Floyd, brother of George Floyd, on CNN’s “New Day” program. .
PHOTOS | Protests over the death of George Floyd, the black man who was pinned by a policeman with his knee
“These officers (those involved in George’s arrest) need to be arrested right now … and be responsible for everything because these people want justice right now,” he added.
A man was shot dead near the protests, which occurred during the night, police reported early Thursday morning. One person was arrested, and authorities indicated that they are investigating the nature of the incident.
As the protests unfolded, protesters threw bottles of water and firecrackers at officers and at a building on the police compound.
Fires eventually broke out in businesses in the area, including an AutoZone. The flames ignited a building under construction and a floor collapsed.
Inside a nearby Target, a video It shows people taking carts of goods and taking them to their cars.
People also robbed a grocery store. By Thursday morning, the exterior glass was smashed and the floor was filled with groceries, while a fire sprinkler system scattered water.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz tweeted late Wednesday that the demonstration “evolved into an extremely dangerous situation” and asked protesters to withdraw and allow firefighters and paramedics to arrive at the scene.
Demonstrations also occurred in other parts of the country on Wednesday night. In Los Angeles, hundreds of people marched to protest Floyd’s death and police brutality. At one point, some protesters attacked a California Highway Patrol car.
“Peaceful protests are a hallmark of our country. Violence is an unjustified act and carries the message. I urge you all to peacefully protest for the good of everyone’s public safety, ”Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said in a statement.
In Memphis, Tennessee, police responded to a protest with the riot team and at least two people were arrested, it reported. WHBQ, affiliate of CNN.
The riots continued after the shock and anger that spread to communities across the country when the video of Floyd’s last moments began to circulate on social media.
The 46-year-old man was arrested Monday night after police said agents received a call to investigate the case of an alleged counterfeit at the Cup Foods store. Mahmoud Abumayyaleh, business owner, he told CNN that a worker called the police to report someone who was using a fake $ 20 bill.
Police arrived and Floyd, suspected of the incident, was handcuffed and placed on the ground. As he begged and said he couldn’t breathe, an agent held him with one knee around his neck. Three other officers were also on the scene.
The Minneapolis Police Department this week fired the four uniformed men involved in Floyd’s arrest. Floyd’s cause of death has not been reported, and the incident is under investigation by local, state and federal authorities.
Floyd’s family wants charges against four agents
Floyd, a Houston native, worked in the security area of Conga Latin Bistro in Minneapolis for five years, according to the owner of the place, Jovanni Thunstrom.
Floyd moved to Minneapolis to work and drive trucks, said his friend for more than 20 years Stephen Jackson, who is also a former NBA player.
Jackson shared that Floyd, the father of two girls, was like a brother to him, and they used to refer to each other as twins.
“He was just a great guy … someone who wanted to be a protector and provider for everyone around him,” Jackson told CNN on Thursday.
“It is disappointing that everyone had to see my friend go that way … He did not deserve it, but the way people support and defend him … his death will not be in vain,” he added.
No charges have been filed for Floyd’s death, But their relatives say they want the four officers involved to be charged with murder.
Who are the agents?
At a press conference on Wednesday, Mayor Frey also called for criminal charges to be brought against the police officer who kept his knee on Floyd’s neck. That agent was identified as Derek Chauvin by his attorney Tom Kelly. The latter has not released a statement on behalf of Chauvin.
Chauvin had 18 complaints filed with the police department’s internal affairs division, according to the department.
It is unclear what the complaints were about, as they were closed, and the police did not provide details.
Only two of the 18 complaints against Chauvin were “closed with discipline,” according to a public police summary.
During an interview broadcast Thursday, Frey told CBS News that he believed Floyd’s death constituted murder.
“I’m not a prosecutor, but let me be clear: The agent who made the arrest killed someone,” Frew said on CBS. “He (Floyd) would be alive today if he were white,” he added.
The police identified the other three uniformed men as Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng.
Thomas Plunkett, representing Kueng, said: “Right now, out of respect for Mr. Floyd, we are rejecting all invitations to discuss these painful events.”
Earl Gray represents another of the agents involved but has declined to say who his client is.
Agents told a witness that Floyd resisted arrest.
Police said they arrested Floyd on Monday after responding to a forgery call and finding him inside a car.
She added that he “physically resisted” after he got out of the vehicle.
A surveillance video, obtained from a nearby restaurant, shows some of the police’s initial contacts with Floyd and does not appear to show obvious resistance from him, he’s already handcuffed. Finally, Floyd is escorted out of the camera plane.
Donald Williams, a witness to the incident, told CNN that he was about to enter a store when he noticed a commotion. He said he saw Floyd “gasping for his life, begging for forgiveness.”
Williams’ description of the events coincides with a video recorded by a viewer in which Floyd can be heard screaming for help and saying “I can’t breathe” and that his body ached.
Williams said she tried to approach an agent and ask what was going on. The agents replied that Floyd “was resisting arrest.”
“I said‘ Agent, he is not resisting arrest, you have your knee on him and he is in handcuffs, he is being detained at the moment, “he said. A uniformed man responded by saying “this is what drugs do to you,” according to Williams.
Floyd was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital soon after. A team of doctors who responded to the incident worked on a “pulseless, unconscious man,” according to a version of the Minneapolis Fire Department released by police.
Minneapolis Police have yet to release images from the body cameras of the officers involved.
CNN’s Sara Sidner, Pete Burn, Carma Hassan, Sarah Moon, Kara Devlin, Melissa Alonso, Omar Jiménez, Pierre Meilhan and Joe Sutton, all contributed to this report.
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