Baltimore is descending into chaos as protestors and cops clash

Protests surrounding the death of a black man while in Baltimore police custody have descended into chaos.

The situation started turning violent this weekend, with protestors swarming the streets and destroying buildings. At this point, multiple officers have been injured, with some unresponsive.  

The violent crowds are throwing bottles, bricks and rocks at cops, according to police department tweets. The escalation comes as authorities have revealed they fear street gangs are teaming up to "take out" officers.

Seven have been seriously injured, according to NBC News. The angry mobs have gathered at multiple locations around the city including downtown and at a shopping mall about one mile west.

Fears over the potential for crowds to become violent forced the closure earlier Monday afternoon of several downtown businesses and offices including the Lexington Market, a city courthouse, T. Rowe Price and the law firm Venable LLP, according to the Baltimore Sun newspaper.

The protests began just after 3:00 p.m. and turned violent within half an hour, according to reports. They were organized around a series of memes and fliers calling for a high school "purge" to start at the Mondawmin shopping mall, according to the Sun.

As of Thursday, two people had been arrested during protests. By Saturday evening, the number of civilian arrests reached 34, and six police received "minor injuries."

A photojournalist for Reuters and one for the Baltimore City Paper were also thrown to the ground by police and detained while covering the protests Saturday, according to the Baltimore Sun.

The raw video shows thousands of protestors taking to the streets of Baltimore on Saturday.

At the time, however, police still said protests were mostly peaceful. 

A line of police in riot gear has taken shape at the entrance to the mall's parking lot keeping people from entering, according to television news reports.

The unrest comes after a weekend during which an angry mob protesting outside Oriole Park at Camden Yards forced the team to close the stadium to keep people inside safe from the violence.

Only a handful of people protesting Gray's death were arrested last week. 

Police announced this morning that street gangs including the Bloods, Crips and Black Guerillas may be seeking to execute cops around the city.