Seattle police found explosives in van at protests over weekend

[brooklynite]

Source: Seattle Times

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Police Chief Carmen Best revealed at a Wednesday news conference that police discovered explosives, smoke bombs and other weapons in a van stationed at the weekend protests.

Saturday’s demonstration, called by the Youth Liberation Front in support of protesters in Portland, erupted in violence. Best said over the weekend that officers used blast balls, pepper spray and 40mm sponge-tip rounds, while some in the crowd of protesters broke windows and started fires. At one point, she said, someone threw an explosive that blew an 8-inch hole through a wall of the Police Department’s East Precinct.

Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins said Saturday evening that his team responded to multiple fires, including one that destroyed four trailers at a construction site.

On Wednesday, Best told reporters that officers saw a van following a group of protesters around 4:30 p.m. Saturday, before it stopped outside the East Precinct. At about the same time, she said, explosions started going off outside the precinct.



Read more: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/seattle-police-found-explosives-in-van-at-protests-over-weekend/?utm_medium=notification&utm_source=pushly&utm_campaign=618912

[not_the_one]

1. Who owned the van?

n/t

[iemitsu]

2. Proud boys?

[2naSalit]

3. Probably.

[lagomorph777]

20. No doubt some kind of White Trumpremacists

[BlueIdaho]

4. Department of Homeland Security.

Their motto is “If you can’t find trouble, make some.“

[Talitha]

6. Bazinga!!!

[Warpy]

15. If it's some RWNJ, we'll never know

If it's some LWNJ, it will be repeated ad nauseum on every news channel out there.

My guess is that it's the former. LWNJs are more into throwing rocks and bricks.

[brooklynite]

18. You're saying the Democratic Mayor of Seattle won't tell the truth?

[Warpy]

19. Oh, they might

Last edited Thu Jul 30, 2020, 12:05 PM - Edit history (2)

but if it's from another state, the Feds won't.

It has now been over 12 hours, ample time to run plates and the VIN and no information is forthcoming.

ETA: the Seattle Times had a photo of the level of sophistication, it was firecrackers taped together with their fuses taped together, the sort of thing you'd expect from teenagers who don't know what they are doing.

Most likely nothing in that van was illegal. The only media reporting this story are far right media, including RT.

[jmowreader]

5. Well, gol-lee!

I predict in about six hours, Our Great President will blame this on "left-wing anarchists" and tell Mayor Durkan if she can't "get this under control to my satisfaction," he'll federalize the city.

I'm sorry folks, but this sounds like a textbook false-flag operation to me.

[LeftInTX]

7. It does to me too

[gab13by13]

17. Many Reichstag fires all across the country.

[gopiscrap]

8. wouldn't surprise me if the fucking cops

planted it

[McKim]

12. My First Thought

This was my first thought as well, just like planting marijuana on hippies or black and brown people.

[Shrike47]

9. The explosives were fireworks, not that they couldn't be dangerous. Explosives sounds scarier.

[captain queeg]

16. That's the first thought I had

[dpibel]

10. Not fascinating

that you would post this.

You really do have a Seattle problem, don't you?

[regnaD kciN]

11. Is this like the "guns and Molotov cocktails" so conveniently found...

...abandoned in a bag in a Portland park, right where DHS could find it?

[Steelrolled]

13. Occam's razor says that the simplest answer is most often right

and in my view the simplest answer is that the van's contents were owned by the non-demonstrator assholes who bust up things, start fires, and fight the police nearly every night.

[lagomorph777]

21. Yup. That vehicle will be traced.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

14. Seattle.gov report on that vehicle with photos of contents....

Detectives Serve Search Warrant, Recover Items Used in Weekend Demonstration
Written by Public Affairs on July 29, 2020 4:57 pm

Link: https://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2020/07/29/detectives-serve-search-warrant-recover-items-used-in-weekend-demonstration/

(click on photos for larger view of each)

Snips....

Arson/Bomb detectives responded to the East Precinct immediately following the explosions. Because of where the vehicle was parked, and how it was abandoned, detectives were concerned the vehicle could contain additional explosives that might detonate. Once it was determined to be safe, the van was impounded.

Detectives applied for and obtained a search warrant and search the van. Detectives located firework pyrotechnics, bear mace, improvised spike strips and nails. In addition, detectives also located gas masks, shin guards/helmets and other body armor, homemade shields and other items. These are just a few of the items found during the search.

What struck me from the photos is that all the materials appeared brand new as if someone had assembled this from scratch with a preplanned purpose.

And, perhaps abandoned on purpose.

KY

[lagomorph777]

22. Sounds like one of those unmarked vans that Trump's goons have been using.

[LiberalLovinLug]

23. Are any of those things illegal?

Can't one buy "firework pyrotechnics" and bear mace?

The other items were for self defence.

It may very well be some protester group. It may come down to this. To accumulate in every legal way, or make it home-made, items that help defend the country from fascists.