Black Lives Matter protesters reportedly vandalized the home of a soldier charged with allegedly assaulting a black man in South Carolina.
“Videos showed a large group holding BLM signs and shouting through a megaphone Wednesday as they stood in the street outside 42-year-old drill sergeant Jonathan Pentland’s home just outside Columbia,” the New York Post reported.
In a tweet Wednesday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department said protests outside the house had turned violent.
“The family was removed after it was vandalized. They were moved to another location and the neighborhood is being closed off except to residents. Please stay out of the area,” the post read:
WATE shared video footage of the large group of protesters outside the home, some wearing t-shirts with “Black Voters Matter,” “Black Lives Matter,” and “It’s About Us” printed on them:
Additional video from WSAV showed protesters marching and chanting, “If we don’t get it, shut it down” and “What do we want? Justice. When do we want it? Now”:
Pentland was charged with third-degree assault on Wednesday and reportedly detained in the Richland County jail where he was issued a personal recognizance bond, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The video clip of the initial incident was posted online Monday and showed a man, identified as Pentland, telling another man to leave the neighborhood:
Posted by Shirell Johnson on Monday, April 12, 2021
“Walk away right now. You need help? I’m happy to help you,” Pentland told him.
“Pretty sure you were the aggressor, buddy,” a woman out of the frame commented. Moments later, the man tried to move toward her and Pentland appeared to shove him back.
“You better walk away,” he told the man. “You walk away, you’re talking to my wife right now,” he stated.
“You either walk away or I’m going to carry your ass out of here,” Pentland continued, and asked him where his house was located.
“Sir you’re acting like a child, move on. You picked a fight with some random young lady that’s one of our neighbors. Get out of here,” the woman out of the frame said, adding, “All I heard was you fighting and her defending herself.”
Another person asked the man for his name and said, “Come on, you don’t want no trouble,” as he appeared to leave and the video ended.
If convicted, Pentland faces up to 30 days behind bars and a $500 fine, the AP report concluded.
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