LA’s Thai Town hit by protesters and rioters

Thai Town businesses in Los Angeles were raided yesterday as rioters and looters across the US hit the streets, enraged over police brutality after a white police officer killed George Floyd, an African American, by pinning him to the ground, with his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck, restricting his breathing. Protesters in Minneapolis, where the officer patrolled, set the police station on fire, sparking riots across America.

SiamTown US, a Thai newspaper in Los Angeles, say looters broke into a Thai restaurant by busting in walls through the pharmacy next door. A jewellery store in Thai Town was broken into around midnight. SiamTown US posted video surveillance footage on their Facebook page.

“Police caught the bad guy, but everything is damaged,” Sue Kiattisak Khamphanthong, the restaurant owner, said in a video posted on her Facebook page. Her video shows multiple holes in the walls where people broke in. Shelves, products and pots in her kitchen were knocked to the ground.

The unrest in Los Angeles has led the National Guard to monitor city hall, the Los Angeles Times reports. Nearly a dozen people were arrested for attempting to loot a mall in the area yesterday and a popular L.A. street was hit hard by looters, with glass shattered all over the sidewalks.

SOURCES: Khaosod  | Los Angeles Times