“We can’t take anything for granted any more”, East Baton Rouge Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said.
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Detectives also recovered two of the stolen handguns from 23-year-old Trashone Coats, who allegedly purchased them illegally on the street. A photo provided by the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office shows Antonio Thomas, 17. Police arrested Bridgewater and two other suspects following a burglary last weekend at a pawn shop where eight handguns were stolen.
Officers approached Alton Sterling in the parking lot of the convenience store, and “an altercation between Sterling and the officers ensued”, police said.
A day after Sterling’s death, motorist Philando Castile, 32, was shot dead by a cop in Minnesota.
“Protest in peace, not guns”, said Cameron Sterling speaking on the spot where his father was killed. A graphic cell phone video of the shooting was shared widely on social media, quickly sparking local protests and drawing national attention.
The son’s comments followed the arrests of three suspects in an alleged plot that authorities are calling a “substantial, credible threat” to police. He was referring to more than 100 protesters arrested Sunday night.
Baton Rouge police said the incident started when officers responded to a disturbance call from someone who said a black man selling CDs wearing a red shirt threatened him with a firearm. The cops reported to the shop just after midnight on July 5 after a homeless man called 911 and said Sterling was carrying a gun. Police were looking for a possible fourth suspect who remained at large Tuesday.
“This is the reason”, Dabadie said, “because we had credible threats against the lives of law enforcement in the city”. Over a three-day period, police arrested 200 protesters and were assailed for their heavy-handed tactics.
The plaintiffs are asking for an immediate temporary restraining order against the state police, Baton Rouge law- enforcement agencies and the district attorney, with the intent of restricting how protesters can be apprehended during future rallies. The people arrested were mostly handcuffed for obstruction of a roadway and inciting a riot.
In making the arrests, it accuses the officers of using “unconstitutional levels of force, including physically tackling nonviolent demonstrators and use mace, taser charges, and/or pepper spray on nonviolent protesters”.
He thanked supporters and urged protesters to remain peaceful. L’Jean McKneely, a Baton Rouge police spokesman, said the burglar told detectives after he was caught.
If you watched the news conference following Alton Sterling’s death the image of Cameron, his 15-year-old son, crying, will probably be stuck with you. His death and the two cellphone videos documenting it have sparked widespread protests.
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“People, in general, no matter what the race, should come together as one united family”.
