‘We came here to riot…’
(Claire Russel, Liberty Headlines) As violence and chaos continue to accompany the riots across the country, dozens of law-enforcement officials are being targeted by radical Antifa leftists.
In St. Louis on Monday night, four officers were hospitalized after a rioter allegedly opened fire oat a line of officers, according to police chief John Hayden. Two officers were shot in the leg, one was shot in the foot, and one more was shot in the arm.
“I believe some coward randomly shot at the police line,” he explained, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I don’t know what else to say. This is horrible.”
And in Las Vegas, an officer is on life support after a rioter shot him in the head, according to local news affiliate Fox 5.
The officer is in “grave condition,” according to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sheriff Joe Lombardo, calling the riots unacceptable. “I hope the community sees it that way too,” Lombardo added.
The officer was reportedly trying to arrest violent instigators in a crowd of protesters when one of the rioters shot him, said Lombardo. The shooter has since been identified and taken into custody.
Meanwhile, in Buffalo, New York, two officers were run down by a rioter who drove directly into a line of police officers, according to local news affiliate WTHR-13. Mayor Byron Brown said the act was intentional, and that the rioters deliberately meant to mow down officers.
BREAKING: A trooper and an officer were hit by a car that blew through a line of officers at the protest on Bailey Avenue according to PBA President John Evans. They were taken to ECMC. Stay with @SPECNewsBuffalo for updates. #Buffalo pic.twitter.com/odQygo09lH
— Stephen Marth (@StephenMarth) June 2, 2020
This violent behavior exhibited toward law enforcement is being encouraged by radical Antifa terrorists, according to U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr. Antifa, a term short for anti-fascists, is an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that caused mayhem and promote anarchy at demonstrations.
One Antifa activist was caught on camera paying protesters to throw objects at officers:
Soros pays Antifa and Antifa pays rioters and looters!! Riots and Gunshots in Los Angeles, this is not protesting!! pic.twitter.com/9YiJVmNVWg
— Forza Veloce (@ForzaVeloce) May 31, 2020
In New York, rioters spray-painted “Kill cops” on a Brooklyn road sign, according to the New York Post. It’s unclear whether Antifa is responsible for the vandalism.
Another Antifa rioter, identified as Matthew Lee Rupert, 28, traveled to Minneapolis from Chicago to broadcast a video of himself handing out explosives to others. He also encouraged protesters to set a Sprint store on fire, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
“We came here to riot,” Rupert says in the video. “He’s throwing my bombs … they’re going to bomb the police with them.”
Rupert has since been arrested and charged with civil disorder, possession of unregistered explosives and participating in and organizing riots illegally.