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Chaos and violence erupted when hundreds of people showed up to get 99-cent sneakers from Adidas and Arizona Iced Tea - see what happened
Chaos and violence erupted when hundreds of people showed up to get 99-cent sneakers from Adidas and Arizona Iced Tea - see what happened
Jul 18, 2019, 23:33 IST
We arrived at 10:30 a.m. There were hundreds of people lined up on The Bowery.
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There were scattered police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances along the street of the pop-up location.
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People were standing in line, but they seemed to have little idea about what was going on. There were rumors of an assault.
The crowd was at its thickest near the location of the would-be pop-up shop.
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Here, there was a heavy presence of police officers and law enforcement. They were telling people to clear the area and keep moving because the event had been closed.
The NYPD later confirmed that two people had been assaulted at the event: a 15-year-old male and a 17-year-old female. No arrests had been made at the time.
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The eyewitness to the assault added: "This is too much. I can't be out here, risking my life for a pair of 99-cent sneakers."
Across the street, people were still waiting for information. Some were even standing in the middle of the street.
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We found people near the pop-up location who said they had been waiting all night for the sneakers.
At some point earlier in the day, people in line were told that they would not be able to get in without a wristband or ticket.
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But at 10:50 a.m., the line still wrapped around the block.
Even though police were saying the event had been shut down, people still appeared to be waiting around to get their sneakers.
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“I’ve been on my feet for literally eight hours,” said Ayishatu Nuhu, who said she had slept for three hours the night before in order to get to the store early.
We found discarded cans of Arizona Iced Tea in the mud near the pop-up location ...
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... as well as what looked like scattered debris from people who had camped out for hours.
Some people gave up and left, but others seemed to be waiting it out in the hopes of attaining some shoes.
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Michael Ompod came prepared to the event at 6 a.m. with his Arizona backpack, iced tea, and single dollar bill. He left the pop-up empty-handed, but said he was thankful for his safety.