Gov. Minnesota Tim Walz deployed the National Guard to Minneapolis in response to civil unrest, including looting, after what authorities described as false information about the black murder of a black murder girl.
Walz said late Wednesday that he was mobilizing the Minnesota National Guard, but did not say how many troops were deployed.
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“We see the unrest on our streets again. And not just Minnesota, but as a nation this pain continues, “he told a news conference late last night. He also tweeted that it was” time to heal. “
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey had set up a bell tower Wednesday night until 6 a.m. Thursday night and had asked the National Guard for help after people broke windows and stole shops from downtown.
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Minneapolis police chief Medaria Arradondo has dismissed rumors on social media about the death of an unknown Black man suspected in a Wednesday afternoon murder that later killed himself at the Nicollet Mall as officials approached, according to officials .
However, the incident, which was captured on video of city guards and released within 90 minutes by police, caused protests and looting in the heart of the inner city.
The video, which was later removed in response to community feedback, confirmed the police account of what happened and showed the man over his shoulder before pulling a gun and shooting, and then crashing to the ground when a half a dozen witnesses fled with their hands in the air, according to the Star Tribune. The officers, one of whom had drawn his gun, snatched away a surviving witness and kicked the suspect’s gun away before performing chest compressions.
“This is not an officer-related incident,” Arradondo said. “We are exacerbating more tragedy due to the devastation and people who want to harm our communities in our downtown sector this evening.”
Minneapolis was shocked by protests that sometimes turned violent after the May 25 death of George Floyd. Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who was in handcuffs, died after a white police officer had his knee on his neck for almost nine minutes, despite Floyd’s various cries that he could not breathe in moments that were recorded on mobile video.
Protesters are also gathering in downtown Minneapolis this week to protest after Jacob Blake, a Black man, was shot Sunday in Wisconsin, prompting his family to partially paralyze him, according to a report.
In Minneapolis, Floyd’s death sparked several nights of violence, including the burning of a Minneapolis police station, until Walz activated the National Guard.
TV footage and reports from reporters Wednesday night showed people packing merchandise at a Saks OFF 5TH store, a fire in a British pub, and broken windows at the door and shrimp scattered on the porch outside Ruth’s Chris Steak House. Minnesota Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell said fireworks were set off and bottles were thrown away Wednesday, and there were reports of guns.
One officer was admitted to the hospital with a serious injury that was not life-threatening, said Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder.
The Minnesota State Patrol mobilized about 150 troopers and all available state troops from the metro areas in response to the unrest in Minneapolis, Walz said.
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“What we are calling for now is peace,” Frey said. “What we are calling for now is for people to return to their homes.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
