Duo arrested after van full of explosives found, at least 30 ATMS blown up in riots: ‘Weapons of mass destruction’

PHILADELPHIA, PA – Two people have been arrested and are facing serious charges after police say they found a van full of illegal explosives.

They were found in a along the Ben Franklin Parkway on Wednesday night, according to Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

Police said the investigation began earlier in the night when officers responded to a commercial burglary alarm and observed 10 to 15 staged vehicles in the City Avenue Marriott parking lot.

They said they watched some of the vehicles suspiciously leaving the parking lot, and that those vehicles later unsuccessfully tried to ram the Target located on Monument Road in the city’s Wynnefield Heights section.

From there, police followed a van that left the area and proceeded onto I-76 and later onto the Ben Franklin Parkway in the heart of Philadelphia.

Inside the vehicle was a disturbing discovery.  They found a quarter or half sticks of dynamite, a handheld propane tank torch, a taser and various tools including electric drills, bolt cutters, and machetes.

They now said those explosives were used to dismantle and steal proceeds from ATMs – and that at least 30 ATM explosions have been reported since Monday night’s unrest.

According to the attorney general, the van driver, Brian Larue, and passenger, Eric Murray, are both facing charges of possession of weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy, and risking a catastrophe, along with several misdemeanor charges.

“These individuals who have been charged today tried to use a message of justice to provide cover for their own gain,” said Attorney General Shapiro. “This is an incredibly challenging time for communities in Philadelphia, across Southeast Pennsylvania, and around the country. We will not allow criminals to hijack, and take advantage of, lawful protests as an opportunity to sow chaos.”

The City of Brotherly love, better known as Philadelphia, has seen consecutive nights of rioting and unrest since the police shot and killed a black man threatening officers with a knife.  Police say members of the so-called peaceful protest have begun blowing up ATMs in an apparent attempt to steal money – at this point it’s unclear if the duo above is responsible for just some or all of the explosions.

One of the earlier incidents occurred on October 26^th at Dalessandro’s Steaks on the 600 block of Wendover Street.  Police reported that unknown persons used some type of explosive device to damage the ATM in apparent hopes of getting the cash that was stored inside.

Resident Kristen Mckernan said:

“The loud boom woke me up.”

The ATM was heavily damaged in the explosion, but it is unknown how much cash, if any, was taken.  Police received another call of an explosion to an ATM machine just after one o’clock in the morning, on the 4200 block of Baltimore Avenue.

When officers arrived on scene, they noted the machine had exploded due to whatever explosive devices were used.  Again, there was no report if any money was taken during the incident.

In all, there were at least 30 ATMs that people had used explosive devices on, in order to steal the cash that was inside of them.

While there are no reports of the exact amount of cash, if any, that was stolen as a result, one chain, the Fresh Grocer, has decided that they can no longer afford to have their ATMs in their stores due to the looting, and they are now removing all of them from Philadelphia.

Resident Rene Brown, disgusted by the actions of the looters, said:

“It’s pathetic. It’s pathetic it really is. This is unbelievable. It’s unbelievable.”

All of the looting is supposedly a result of the police involved shooting of Walter Wallace, Jr.

Wallace was seen on video chasing after Philadelphia Police officers, who were trying to escape him, while he was armed with a knife.

Wallace refused several lawful orders to drop the knife he was carrying and kept advancing on officers, forcing them into a position that they seemingly felt their lives, or someone else’s were in danger, and opened fire.

The officers fired 14 times, striking and killing Wallace in the middle of the street.  Of course, the officers appeared to be white and Wallace was black, so, somehow, the officers must have been racist in their attack according to protesters.

In recently uncovered documents related to the deceased 27-year-old Wallace’s criminal history, we’re now able to get a better understanding that Wallace had a pattern of violent behavior against others.

Apparently Wallace was an “aspiring rapper” that wrote songs related to such wonderful subjects as shooting people – including police officers.

Now, while music that glorifies or mentions violent acts doesn’t always translate to the artists committing violent acts, it’s certainly worthy of speculation when an artist is a violent individual that produces music that’s allegorical of their criminal and violent exploits.

Back in 2017, Wallace reportedly pleaded guilty to robbery, assault and possessing an instrument of crime.

In that case specifically, authorities say that Wallace kicked in a woman’s front door and placed a gun to her head. This may come as a shock, but Wallace was only sentenced to 11 to 23 months in prison for that crime.

Keep in mind, Wallace could have been sentenced to up to five years for just the instrument of a crime charge.

And police had reportedly been called out to the home where Wallace stayed numerous times since May of this year – roughly 31 calls according to sources.

Not to mention, his own mother placed a protective order against Wallace in 2013 which he wound up violating when he “threw water in her face and punched her in the face” and “threatened to return and shoot” his own mother.

In 2019, Wallace was charged with resisting arrest when he was allegedly trying to kick out the windows and door panels of a police car. And just in March of this year, he was arrested for allegedly threatening the mother of his children over the phone saying:

“I’ll shoot you and that house up.”

 Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw recently commented on the case, noting that there’s questions on whether the responding officers knew who they were responding to when called to the address the day of the fatal shooting:

“There are several questions that need to be answered… including what the officers knew when they responded, what was put out by radio and how any previous contact with Mr. Wallace factored into [the October 26^th shooting].”

Wallace’s cousin, Anthony Fitzhugh, is pointing to Wallace having “mental health issues” being one of the possible reasons he may have responded violently toward authorities prior to being shot:

“They were advised that he had mental health issues. I understand he had a knife, and their job is to protect and serve. By all means do so, but do not let lethal force be the means by which you de-escalate the situation. You could have still kept your gun drawn while another officer tased him.”

Except, the officers dispatched didn’t have tasers.  And that situation is about to get worse: