Fires broke out during a protest in Minneapolis on Thursday night after a man was fatally shot by police—just over a year after the death in custody of George Floyd.
Videos posted to social media showed a dumpster on fire in the middle of the road at Lake Street and Girard Avenue on Thursday night, close to the scene of the fatal shooting earlier that day.
In a video posted on Gab, a social networking site that has become popular with conservatives, a group of protesters were shown surrounding the fire. It burned for 40 minutes before police arrived, according to independent journalist Rebecca Brannon.
In the footage on Gab, one of the men standing close to the fire can be heard saying: "It's hotter than hell." Another says: "Welcome to Minneapolis where we f*** this s*** up."
Another fire was set in a dumpster behind Morrissey's Irish pub, on Lake Street, and fights were also reported to have broken out during the night.
The protests came just a few hours after members of a U.S. Marshals task force attempted to arrest a man on a warrant for gun possession, according to a statement from Hennepin County Sheriff's Department that was sent to Reuters.
The sheriff's department said the man, "who was in a parked car, failed to comply and produced a handgun, resulting in task force members firing upon the subject."
The officers attempted to revive the man, but paramedics declared him dead at the scene. A woman who was in the car suffered minor injuries after glass shattered.
The authorities have not yet identified the man, but he has been named on social media as Winston Boogie Smith Jr, a 32-year-old Black man, according to Twitter account @CrimeWatchMpls.
Following reports of the shooting on Thursday afternoon, a small group of protesters gathered behind the yellow police tape at the scene, before demonstrators broke through it and chanted: "All cops are b*******."
The protest grew in size as the night progressed, with footage on social media showing people breaking windows and then looting T-Mobile and CVS stores in the area.
Police were also filmed deploying tear gas at the large crowd of people gathered at the intersection. Armed officers were seen in the area arresting demonstrators. The dumpster fire was later put out by the emergency services.
The city of Minneapolis has just marked the first anniversary of the death of George Floyd in custody on May 25, 2020, an event that sparked protests against racism and police brutality around the world.
In April, a jury convicted former officer Derek Chauvin of Floyd's murder. The other officers who were at the scene have yet to go on trial. Chauvin is due to be sentenced on June 25, but his attorneys are pushing for a new trial.
Newsweek has contacted Hennepin County Sheriff's Department for comment.
