Philadelphia police on Tuesday made several arrests in connection with looting and property damage that occurred throughout the Center City area, authorities said in a release.
Looters in Philadelphia on Tuesday night ransacked and looted a Foot Locker and Lululemon store in the area, police said. Authorities responded to both scenes after 8:00 p.m. Shortly after, police were alerted to a similar situation at a nearby Apple store, but made no arrests in connection with this incident.
As of Wednesday, police said they had made 52 total arrests across all the incidents that occurred Tuesday evening.
Police stopped a group of young males dressed in black with masks shortly before reports were made regarding the ransacking at the shops, according to the release. The value of stolen and damaged goods is currently unclear.
According to ABC7, the looting incidents were unrelated to prior protests and unrest surrounding a judge’s decision to drop charges against the cop who shot and killed Eddie Irizarry, who was pulled over for erratic driving. The outlet also reported that 15 suspects had been arrested in connection with the incident.
Police added that they are currently responding to “several reports of property damage and thefts throughout the city.”
Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney thanked Philly police for responding to the incidents and making the necessary arrests in a Wednesday tweet. “This was a sickening display of opportunistic criminal activity, and we will not stand for it,” he wrote, adding that he is working with police to bring more coverage resources in certain areas to protect people and businesses.
“We can confirm the unfortunate incident that occurred at our store in Center City Philadelphia and that our team members are safe,” said in a statement. “The safety of our team, and that of customers, remains our number one priority. We are monitoring the situation and taking proper precautions.”
FN has reached out to Lululemon and Apple for a comment.
These large-scale retail thefts occur during a period of heightened unrest due to surges in retail crime across the country. Target Corp. said on Tuesday that it will close nine stores in four major cities as it faces waves of organized crime and theft. And other retailers have recently made the decision to retreat from certain markets in the wake of heightened retail crime waves as well.
Also on Tuesday, the National Retail Federation released data that showed that retailers have seen a dramatic jump in financial losses associated with theft in 2022. When taken as a percentage of total retail sales in 2022, shrink accounted for $112.1 billion in losses, up from $93.9 billion in 2021, according to the 2023 National Retail Security Survey released by NRF.