Chicago: Man murdered by rioters, others shot, dozens of officers injured, cops dragged through streets

Screenshot from Twitter: @ogsalsatrap

Chicago: Man murdered by rioters, police radios reportedly hacked, dozens of officers injured, cops dragged through streets

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CHICAGO, IL- The “peaceful protests” resulted in anything but peace on Saturday.

On the contrary, at least four people were shot downtown and one of them was killed.

There’s also been significant chatter that ‘Anonymous’ hacked Chicago police radios and played the song ‘Fuck the police’.

CPD administration has not confirmed that the radios were hacked.

All of this as a well-financed “bail fund” promises to bail out people arrested in the riots.

The murder happened about 11 p.m. in River North in the 100 block of West Hubbard Street.

Police said Bernardino Mercado, 26, was walking on the sidewalk when he exchanged words with a male suspect in a car.

According to Chicago police, the suspect got out of the car and started hitting the male with a handgun – then shot Mercado in the chest before continuing to strike the other person with the weapon. 

He then got back in his car and drove off.

Police said Mercado, who lived in Avondale on the Northwest Side, was pronounced dead at the scene.

At least three more people were shot in the Loop.

One happened about 10:30 p.m. in the 200 block of North Michigan Avenue.  Police said a man, 19, was standing on the sidewalk when he heard gunshots and felt pain.

He brought himself to Stroger Hospital with multiple gunshot wounds and was listed in critical condition.

At about 9:30 p.m., two other people were shot a few blocks away in the first block of West Jackson Boulevard.

Their ages were not immediately known, but both are at the University of Illinois Hospital in good condition.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who has – at best – a strained relationship with the Chicago Police Department that she often attacks – announced a curfew in effect from 9 p.m. Saturday to 6 a.m.

A lot of good that did.

Dozens of Chicago police officers were injured after riots erupted again on Saturday night.

This, as countless demonstrators attacked responding officers and – in one horrifying scene – beat and dragged them.  More on that below.

Police Supt. David Brown said gave an overview of the mayhem:

“We had dozens [of officers] injured today,” he said during a press conference Saturday evening, when a citywide curfew was announced.

How many?  They stopped counting.

“We don’t have an ongoing count. We do have one officer with broken bones – I will tell you that’s pretty serious – others who have had minor injuries, but it’s ongoing and the night’s young and this crowd is increasingly more mean-spirited and violent.”

Saturday evening, Law Enforcement Today spoke with an on-duty officer on the condition of anonymity:

“Officers are under attack – and it’s going to get worse.  Rioters are coming in by the busload and they aren’t letting us do anything to stop it.”

But the images speak for themselves.

On Saturday night, video footage hit Twitter showing officers violently attacked and dragged through the streets while masked rioters cheered.

The officers fought desperately to get away and protect each other… to no avail.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who has had countless dustups with the police department, held a press conference shortly after 8 p.m.

She said the protests had “evolved into criminal conduct” and imposed a curfew on the city: from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. until further notice.

Lightfoot said she was “disgusted” after seeing protesters use pipes, hammers and other objects to damage property.

“I’m here to call you out for your recklessness,” she said to rioters.

“I’ve seen protesters hurl projectiles at our police department…bottles of water, urine and lord knows what else,’’ she said.

https://twitter.com/_Physicism/status/1266906679473553409

“I want to express my disappointment and really, my total disgust at the number of others who came to today’s protests armed for all out battle.’

Chicago police Superintendent David Brown was also at the press conference.

“We will be taking you into custody when you destroy property,” or burn cars, said Brown. “That’s just facts.”

The crowd numbers grew to more than 3,000 people by 2 p.m. and started making way onto Lake Shore Drive and shut down portions of the roadway.

By 3:30 p.m., hundreds began to turn violent, throwing fireworks, bottles and we’re told gasoline at officers.

Then came the vandalism, as they hit buildings, cars and a bus shelter.

It didn’t take long for reports of injuries to come in, including at a police sergeant who had his arm broken near Trump Tower.

By 4 p.m., the crowds had split into multiple groups, escalating violence against law enforcement.

By 5 p.m., there were at least a dozen calls of 10-1, which is a police emergency, as they worked to control the crowd.

Rioters tried to overturn a Chicago police car.  Others broke out into fights with police officers.

Around 7:30 p.m. at Dearborn and Hubbard streets, a police vehicle was flipped over.

Mayor Lightfoot, of course, seized the opportunity to attack the President.

“It’s not easy when we have a president who is inciting violence.”

“Let’s be better than him,” said Lightfoot.

Watch below as she’s “better than him”.

She made sure to urge people to wear masks while rioting.

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The staff of Law Enforcement Today is comprised of mostly career cops, as well as their avid supporters. Cumulatively, we possess nearly a century of experience in the business of police work. Our backgrounds derive from the East Coast, West Coast, South and Upper Midwest. We are the voice of law enforcement, connecting with our readers throughout the entire country and uniting the Blue Family. We have our finger on the pulse of American Law Enforcement and endlessly support our brothers and sisters who hold the Thin Blue Line.

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