Minnesota retailers looted following death of Daunte Wright
Officials say over dozen businesses were hit, including Walmart, T-Mobile
More than a dozen Minnesota retailers were looted Monday morning after the death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright, who was fatally shot by police over the weekend.
Retailers in Brooklyn Center, Minn., a city of about 30,000 people on the northwest border of Minneapolis, were targeted after protests and riots started.
During a briefing Monday, Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington addressed the civil unrest in the area, specifically the group of people that targeted the Shingle Creek mall.
"We have reports of approximately 20 businesses that were broken," Harrington said.
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Officers stopped a motorist shortly before 2 p.m. Sunday for an unspecified traffic violation, police said in a statement. Authorities planned to provide an update later Monday.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMT | WALMART INC. | 88.39 | +1.21 | +1.39% |
| TGT | TARGET CORP. | 121.59 | -0.17 | -0.14% |
| GME | GAMESTOP CORP. | 27.83 | -0.60 | -2.11% |
| TMUS | T-MOBILE US INC. | 236.58 | +1.11 | +0.47% |
| FL | FOOT LOCKER INC. | 22.43 | -0.01 | -0.03% |
| DLTR | DOLLAR TREE INC. | 65.76 | +2.58 | +4.08% |
| CVS | CVS HEALTH CORP. | 57.10 | +0.27 | +0.48% |
Katie Wright said her son called her as he was getting pulled over.
"All he did was have air fresheners in the car, and they told him to get out of the car," Wright said. During the call, she said she heard scuffling and then someone saying, "Daunte, don’t run" before the call ended. When she called back, her son’s girlfriend answered and said he had been shot.
After determining the driver had an outstanding warrant, police said they tried to arrest him. Then the driver reentered the vehicle, and an officer fired, striking him, police said. The vehicle traveled several blocks before striking another vehicle.
Wright’s family offered a different account, with Katie Wright saying her son was shot before getting back into the car.
A female passenger sustained nonlife-threatening injuries during the crash, authorities said. Katie Wright said that passenger was her son’s girlfriend.
According to reports, the Walmart in Brooklyn Center and several businesses in a nearby shopping mall were hit early Monday after violent demonstrations began.
Businesses near the Walmart, such as Foot Locker, T-Mobile and a men's clothing store called To New York, were also reportedly damaged as groups ransacked the insides, The Star Tribune reported.
Multiple social media posts also show that a Little Caesars and a GameStop were also targeted.
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"I understand why people are frustrated, I do," the store manager of To New York, Andre Stevenson, told the Star Tribune. "But this isn’t going to solve anything, ultimately."
Representatives of To New York did not provide comment. GameStop has not responded to FOX Business' request for comment.
"The events of last night did result in some of our stores being damaged," a Walmart spokesperson told FOX Business in a statement. "Out of an abundance of caution, those stores will be closed until further notice. We’re continuing to monitor the situation and will determine when it’s appropriate for our locations to reopen."
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The images and videos circulating on Twitter also show how the looting has since spread to parts of Minneapolis where protests and riots occurred following the death of Floyd in May 2020. Violence quickly spread in Minneapolis, hitting Family Dollar, CVS and GameStop along with Target, according to published reports and social media posts.
To tame the latest civil unrest, Harrington said law enforcement agencies were coordinating efforts and that the National Guard was activated.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz tweeted he was praying for Wright’s family "as our state mourns another life of a Black man taken by law enforcement."
Police didn’t immediately identify Wright or disclose his race, but some protesters who gathered near the scene waved flags and signs reading "Black Lives Matter." Others walked peacefully with their hands held up. On one street, written in multicolored chalk: "Justice for Daunte Wright."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.