TUKWILA, Wash. — Along with weekend thefts at stores and shopping malls in Seattle, Bellevue, Renton and Spokane, stores in Tukwila’s Southcenter District were also targeted as police were busy with crowds protesting the death of George Floyd in Seattle and Bellevue.
REI, Target, Firestone, Best Buy, Bowlero, Red Robin, Total Wine & More, Best Buy and BevMo! were among the stores that were either looted or damaged Sunday.
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Looters ran through Target, which had closed at 11 a.m., and Tukwila police set off tear gas canisters in several locations.
Officers said a large crowd gathered at Westfield Southcenter Mall and rushed an entrance to try to get inside. When the crowd was broken up by police, it moved south to Red Robin, Total Wine & More and Best Buy.
Rocks and other items were thrown at officers as well as at store doors and windows, leaving piles of broken glass behind.
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A curfew was put into place from 9 p.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. Monday.
At least nine people were arrested, with several suspects taken into custody at Best Buy, where broken glass and electronics littered the parking lot.
Officers from other jurisdictions responded to help Tukwila police during the crime spree.