Aftermath in New York's Union Square after chaos erupts as live streamer's giveaway goes awry

Record ID: 1736581

  • Title: Aftermath in New York's Union Square after chaos erupts as live streamer's giveaway goes awry
  • Date: 5th August 2023
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (AUGUST 4, 2023) (REUTERS) POLICE OFFICERS NEXT TO TRUNK OF POLICE CAR
  • Embargoed: 19th August 2023 03:14
  • Keywords: Kai Cenat NYPD Union Square chaos
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,North America,Civil Unrest
  • Reuters ID: LVA005244805082023RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:City officials and police began assessing the damage after thousands of people overran New York City's Union Square and the surrounding streets on Friday (August 4) in a chaotic scene, drawn by a popular live streamer who had announced a "giveaway" event.
    Police struggled to contain the crowd of predominantly young people, some throwing projectiles and injuring officers.
    The event was promoted by Kai Cenat, best known for his live streams on the gaming site Twitch and YouTube videos. He had earlier announced a "huge giveaway" on his Instagram account for 4 p.m. ET (2000 GMT) at the Manhattan park.
    In a video posted Thursday, Cenat told his followers that the giveaway would include computers and PlayStation 5 consoles.
    Jeffrey Maddrey, the highest-ranking uniformed officer for the New York City Police Department, told reporters that police were questioning Cenat and that charges against him were possible, including inciting a riot.
    (Production: Deborah Lutterbeck)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2023. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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