Riot erupts in Milwaukee after cop shoots armed criminal

Crowds became destructive and violent after a man fleeing a traffic stop was shot dead by police.

Police said that the dead man, 23, was holding a stolen semi-automatic firearm when he was shot in Northern Milwaukee on Saturday afternoon.

As evening approached, more than 100 people smashed windows on police cars and set fire to an auto parts store, beauty supply store, a bank, a police car and a gas station while yelling “black power.”

Looting and destruction became widespread throughout the night.

Black lives matter activists were then seen attacking random white people.

Fire department officials say they were unable to fight the fires as there was also gunfire in the area.

The race of the police officer and dead man have not yet been released, but police say that the deceased had a long history of criminal behavior and was in possession of a stolen firearm at the time of the shooting.

Officials say that the criminal was shot once in the chest and once in the arm. A frontal chest shot might indicate that the criminal had turned to fire on the officer, but until the officer’s body camera video is analyzed, that cannot be confirmed.

As the sun rose on Sunday, the destruction became more evident.