It wasn’t all a gang of rioters in Baltimore last night.
The gang members who Baltimore officials said were banding together to attack police went to the media with a message that they didn’t call a truce so they could team up to attack the police; they were teaming up to stop the rioting.
A group of Bloods gang members told WBAL-TV that they had been attacked on the streets when they were stopping rioters from damaging buildings and businesses by police who did not realize they were attempting to stop the riots.
A member of the BGF gang said that the groups were “black men united for justice” and that people need to stop believing everything they’re hearing in the media because they’re tired of being blamed for the rioting when in this case they’re not involved with the crimes.
Others stepped up to stop the rioting and protests in an attempt to bring calm to the city of Baltimore…including the family of Freddie Gray. Gray’s family, clergy and residents of the area banded together to stop the violence.
“I want them all to go back home,” said the Rev. Jamal Bryant. “It’s disrespect to the family. The family was very clear — we’ve been saying it all along — today there was absolutely no protest, no demonstration.”
Members of a Christian church formed a human wall as well as other faith groups.
CNN showed video of a parent coming into the middle of the rioting and grabbing her son, forcing him to go home.
“I wish I had more parents that took charge of their kids out there tonight,” Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said.
The darker side of the city was shown all night through looting, arson and violence. A drug treatment center and senior center that was under construction was burned to the ground by protesters. A CVS pharmacy, a locally-owned pharmacy, liquor store and multiple cars were robbed and burned.
Fox News discovered a report that shows a link between the violence in Ferguson, MO and the violence that is burning Baltimore.
A government related data mining firm has found between 20 and 50 social media accounts in Baltimore that were connected to the peak of the violence and rioting in Ferguson. The discovery suggests that “professional protesters” are taking advantage of the Baltimore situation in an attempt to cause anarchy and violence.
Fox reported that the data mining company said the locations could be spoofed, but that they can’t fully explain away the massive numbers if that would be the case.
The launching of the Monday rioting began via social media when calls were placed for a “purge” starting at the Mondawmin Mall and moving downtown. The reference was to a movie called “The Purge” where for 12 hours there is no police or emergency response, allowing citizens to commit acts of crime and violence with immunity.
While gang members are denying they were working together to focus on white police officers, texts through social media did show accounts calling for people to “kill all white police officers” in response to the death of Freddie Gray.
A 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew for all Baltimore citizens goes into effect tonight and will last for one week.
Baltimore police investigators have confirmed that the city’s three biggest gangs are joining together to attack police following the funeral of Freddie Gray.
The Bloods, Crips and the Black Guerrilla Family have formed what’s being labeled a “partnership” to “take out” the police.
Spokesmen for the Baltimore police would not officially say the threat is connected to the death of Freddie Gray but the coordinated assaults on police officers began shortly after the end of Gray’s funeral service Monday in Baltimore.
The news of the unification of the gangs backs up a previous warning this year from the FBI that the Black Guerrilla Family gang was targeting “white cops” in the state. A member of the BGF was caught in a Baltimore area police station with a gun in January in what he said was a “security test” of the precinct ordered by gang leaders.
The gang members have been posting on social media their actions against police, flashing gang colors and signs amid the rioting. They’ve shown kicked in car windows, evidence of looting and other actions while demanding “Justice for Freddie.”
Members of the Nation of Islam said they had brokered the deal between the gangs.
“I can say with honesty those brothers demonstrated they can be united for a common good,” Nation of Islam minister Carlos Muhammad told The Daily Beast.
“At the rally, they made the call that they must be united on that day. It should be commended.”
The incidents involving the gangs in Baltimore are having national impact. Both the NYPD and the LAPD have announced their officers are on heightened alert over the threats.
