NEW YORK CITY – YouTube entertainer Kai Cenat drew chaotic crowds Friday in New York City while hosting a giveaway at Union Square, according to CBS News.
People could be seen tearing at construction barricades and throwing objects at police officers. Meanwhile, one person could be seen setting off a fire extinguisher.
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The crowd was apparently gathered for Cenat’s giveaway. The crowds prompted a response from police, who worked to secure the area and make arrests.
Video shows people climbing on top of the roof covering the entrance to the Union Square subway station.
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The New York Police Department called for a Level 4 mobilization — its highest response level — leading to roughly 1,000 officers coming out to the scene.
While a large portion of the crowd thinned out by around 4:40 p.m., there were still plenty of people in the area as of Friday evening.
CBS News said that NYPD Chief Jeffrey Maddrey later reported that Cenat’s announcement of the giveaway had gone viral, bringing in the large crowds. The giveaway was originally meant to involve video game consoles.
“Soon the park and the surrounding streets were overrun with people. They were disrupting both vehicular and pedestrian traffic. The NYPD responded by calling a mobilization in response to the large crowd. As the crowd grew, so did our mobilization. The crowd was swarmed when the influencer finally arrived at the park. Individuals in the park began to commit acts of violence towards the police and the public,” Maddrey said.
According to CBS News, Cenat was later taken into custody by police for questioning.
No additional information is available at this time.
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