Crime & Safety

'Ugly' Night Descends Into Chaos As Rioters Loot Soho Stores

Protests turned violent overnight Sunday.

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Workers board up the windows of a Chanel store, Monday, June 1, 2020, in the SoHo neighborhood of New York. Protesters broke into the store Sunday night in reaction to George Floyd's death.
Workers board up the windows of a Chanel store, Monday, June 1, 2020, in the SoHo neighborhood of New York. Protesters broke into the store Sunday night in reaction to George Floyd's death. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

SOHO, NY – A relatively peaceful day of protest Sunday turned into chaos overnight as looters ransacked upscale stores and ran riot through Soho, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said Monday.

"When it got dark, it got ugly and it got ugly quick," the police chief said on NBC's Today show.

He said more than 250 people were arrested overnight with storefronts being shattered throughout the neighborhood until dawn Monday. Social media reports showed stores including Gucci, Chanel and Bloomingdales being targeted.

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Sunday saw the fourth day of massive protests in the city following the death of Minnesota man George Floyd at the hands of police.

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