After a relatively calm Friday in Ferguson, Missouri, tension flared again early Saturday morning as protesters rushed into a convenience store that Michael Brown was accused of robbing and were confronted with tear gas from police wearing riot gear. Multiple stores were said to be robbed, while other protesters protected several stores from looting.
Missouri State Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson said that someone began throwing rocks and other objects, prompting police to deploy tear gas, but no arrests were made. Molotov cocktails hit a liquor store causing it to catch fire, HuffPost's Christine Conetta reported from the scene.
Police in riot gear were present, but never left the corner of Florissant Ave and Ferguson Ave., despite stores being looted just feet away. From midnight to 4:00 a.m., community members were left to self-police, Conetta observed, with several people trying to prevent looters from continuing to take items from stores.
Someone threw a bottle at cops next to McDonalds now this. thu are back bottles being thrown pic.twitter.com/CLqBkmIFiM
— Amy K. Nelson (@AmyKNelson) August 16, 2014
They are back ... "this is the police you are ordered to disperse immediately." people chanting "fuck the police" pic.twitter.com/6sVK4QEIyj
— Amy K. Nelson (@AmyKNelson) August 16, 2014
Residents who were out here say it was tear gas deployed
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) August 16, 2014
shot while running from the tear gas and flash bombs #ferguson pic.twitter.com/ptWWQvBQ9b
— Amy K. Nelson (@AmyKNelson) August 16, 2014
After deploying tear gas, police returned with armored cars and equipment suited for controlling crowds.
After the confrontation between protesters and police, looters began targeting several area businesses.
Someone just kicked out window if beauty supply store https://t.co/vczIcD3HWz
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) August 16, 2014
Wireless store being looted pic.twitter.com/fxJ6drrkox
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) August 16, 2014
Sam's Meat Market being looted
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) August 16, 2014
But some protesters took positions to block the looters from ransacking the businesses.
With @antoniofrench and a crew who just went into liquor store and opened bottles of soda to put fire out.
— Amy K. Nelson (@AmyKNelson) August 16, 2014
As a store burns, cars do wheelies in the street, people loot, others stop them & the city turns chaotic police say nothing & sit in trucks
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) August 16, 2014
Several community members showed up Saturday morning to clean up the mess that looters left behind, KMOV reported, and business owners expressed their gratitude.
The liquor store seemed to have experienced the most damage, and most of the liquor had been stolen, according to KMOV.
Michael Brown was shot on Aug. 9 after he and a friend were walking in the street and encountered a police officer. Brown's friend who was with him that night, Dorian Johnson, said that the officer attacked Brown, then shot at the 18-year-old as he was trying to get away. Ferguson Police claim that Brown attacked the officer, and said Wednesday that the officer involved in the altercation was injured. Multiple witnesses have said that they saw Brown with his hands up in the air when he was shot.
Police released footage on Friday that they said showed Brown robbing a convenience store for cigarillos. Darren Wilson, the officer who shot Brown, was not aware that he was a suspect in a robbery at the time of the shooting. The family's attorney accused police of trying to "assassinate the character of Michael Brown" to divert attention from his death.
For the latest updates, follow The Huffington Post's Ryan J. Reilly and Christine Conetta who are covering events in Ferguson.