Handful of Looters Arrested in Houston During Harvey As Fake Reports Spread

[FLPanhandle]

http://heavy.com/news/2017/08/houston-looters-arrests-harvey-loot-crew-fake/

While there have been only a few arrests of looters in Houston after Hurricane Harvey hit, fake reports have spread online with the hashtags #HoustonLootCrew and #HarveyLootCrew. Past natural disasters and other events have also led to the spread of fake looting reports.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo told ABC News Monday morning that they are working to help people who need to be rescued from the catastrophic floods caused by Harvey. Police will also protect the city from looters as the floodwater recedes.

“We’ve already arrested a handful of looters. We’ve made it real clear to our community we’re going to do whatever it takes to protect their homes and their businesses,” Acevedo told ABC News. “And when people come from the outside to Houston, Texas, know we’re going to be out in the city, we’re not going to rest as a police department or law enforcement community until people restore their lives.”

Despite real reports of minimal looting, fake reports have spread on Twitter. For example, Breaking911 tweeted what it claimed was a video from Houston showing “Widespread looting reported in Houston as police are trying to save lives.” The tweet was retweeted over 1,400 times. The hashtags #HarveyLootCrew and #HoustonLootCrew also gained traction.

Despite the attempts to get #HoustonLootCrew and #HarveyLootCrew to trend nationally, it is #HoustonStrong that has remained on Twitter to show the strength and resiliency of the city’s residents.