The nationwide protests that began with the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer reached the suburbs of San Leandro on Sunday.

During a day with very little organized protests in San Leandro, looters attempted to ransack Bayfair Mall in the afternoon hours. The mayhem extended into the night.

The Marina Square strip mall on Marina Boulevard near Interstate 880 was looted. Merchandise from a Nike outlet store was stolen, orange Nike shoe boxes strewn across the parking lot.

The group then marched across the street to a Dodge dealership on San Leandro’s Auto Row, shattering windows and stealing a number of high-end vehicles.

City officials announced a citywide curfew immediately beginning at 10 p.m. on Sunday night, but it did little to stop the vandals.

Across town, the Walmart store on Davis Street was looted and set on fire. The Home Depot in the same shopping center was also looted late Sunday night.

Alameda County firefighters put out the fire at Walmart, but another conflagration subsequently occurred inside the building, leading firefighters to return.

Almost concurrently, down the street from Walmart, looters hit the downtown areas of San Leandro. A GameStop on East 14th Street was thoroughly thrashed and the windows of the T-Mobile store around the block were broken.

Advertisement