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Ferguson. — Missouri law enforcement officials said yesterday that they were preparing for continued angry protests in the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, after a fire destroyed a makeshift memorial honouring a black teenager killed by a police officer last month.
On Tuesday night, some in a crowd of roughly 200 protesters clashed with police and at least one business was damaged in Ferguson, officials said.
The mostly black community of 21 000 has seen weeks of racially charged protests and bursts of violence following the August 9 killing of Michael Brown (18), by white Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson.
The past three weeks have seen mostly peaceful protests and the law enforcement presence in the area had been reduced.
But the Tuesday morning fire that destroyed the smaller of two memorials to Brown ignited fresh anger and police forces will be expanded again, said Al Nothum, a spokesman for the Missouri State Highway Patrol, which is coordinating law enforcement activities in Ferguson.
“The fire started this whole thing up again,” Nothum said.
“A lot of people thought the police did it or it was done on purpose by someone. We believe candles caught it on fire. But we’re looking into it.” — AP.
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