Riots broke out in the streets of Chicago as hundreds of people swept through the streets overnight, injuring police officers, smashing store windows, and looting and damaging property after police officers shot a man they say was armed.

More than 100 people were arrested and 13 officers were injured, Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said Monday at a news conference.

“This wasn’t an organized protest. It was an incident of pure criminality,” Brown said. “Criminals took to streets with confidence that there would be no consequences for their actions. I refuse to let these cowardly acts hold our city hostage.”

The shooting happened Sunday afternoon when police responded to a call of a person with a gun. When officers said they tried to confront the man the suspect fled on foot, firing toward officers as he did.

Two officers fired back, striking the man, identified as a 20-year-old with four arrests for burglary, child endangerment and domestic battery. He was taken to a hospital, where he was in stable condition.

Police said afterwards they started noticing social media posts encouraging looting and were then called to reports of a mob scene at about 12:20 a.m.

Looting began with it spreading from stores and other businesses in the Loop to several other neighborhoods, including River North, Streeterville, Lincoln Park, the Gold Coast and the South Loop.

Police responded with many being injured by objects thrown and some were shot at. Officers who were arresting a man with a cash register were shot at by people passing by in a vehicle. Also, a security guard and a civilian were struck by gunfire during the early morning hours and taken to hospitals.

The chaos led to street closures in Chicago’s Loop, the center of the city’s downtown. Also, downtown train and bus services were shut down, and the bridges over the Chicago River were lifted, while expressway ramps were blocked going in and out of the city’s Loop.

At least two Chicago colleges closed campuses monday in response to the unrest, and City Hall employees were told to work from home “due to restricted access to downtown.”

Police Superintendent Brown said access to downtown would be “restricted” with a heavy police presence starting at 8 p.m. Monday and lasting until 6 a.m. Tuesday.

The Biblical Prophecies (Matthew 24, Luke 21) foretell that the Last Days will be a time of lawlessness and violence, as it was in the Days of Noah, indicating the nearing end of this age of grace.

These events and conditions happening now are warning signs pointing to the nearing fulfillment of the Last Days prophecies at the end of this age revealing it’s time to prepare now for the nearing appearance of Jesus Christ for His Church by being born again spiritually into the Kingdom of God as Jesus said we must (John 3) and His Apostles who were authorized (Matthew 16:19) described how (Acts 2).

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