Cultural commentator Amala Ekpunobi and former Minneapolis Police Commander Scott Gerlicher slammed the participants in the viral Philadelphia looting spree on Thursday’s episode of “The Ingraham Angle.”
Gerlicher stated that the courts and prosecution should take a “hard line” against the looters. He said he agreed with the Philadelphia police commissioner’s assessment that the looting had “nothing to do with” protests and that the participants were “opportunistic criminals.” (RELATED: Six Major US Cities Report Historic Increases In Violent Crime)
He blasted the “sense of arrogance” and “no fear of reprisal” apparent in the looters. He acknowledged that looting is an “extremely dangerous” situation for officers to respond to and how “frustrating” it is for the public.
“You’re dealing with often times dozens or hundreds of people, at multiple different locations, usually throughout the city that are doing this. And, unless the police are right there on the spot to prevent theft from happening, once they go in, they’re very quick. They’re hitting these stores. They’re grabbing the merchandise. They’re getting out of there as quickly as they can,” Gerlicher said.
Ekpunobi said that she sees similar crimes in Los Angeles and that people “do whatever they want” as a result of “no accountability.” She said that the citizens of Los Angeles are worried about their personal safety and being robbed amid spiking crime rates. She said that Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom needs to “put that at the forefront of his brain.”
Ekpunobi encouraged Philadelphia’s citizens to vote out their district attorney.
“Philadelphia, in particular, has a D.A. that is particularly soft on crime, and as soon as the citizens and constituents realize that, they need to get rid of him,” Ekpunobi said.
Over 100 looters in Philadelphia targeted stores such as Apple, LuluLemon, and Footlocker in a series of smash-and-grabs on Tuesday. Police said the looting held no relation to a peaceful protest in response to charges dropped against an officer-involved shooting.