UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (WABC) — There’s a not-so-secret society that’s made quite a name for itself over the years… Ryan Meetup.
Saturday marked “Rytoberfest” in Union Square.
The idea is a simple one. People from across the country will come together at a bar, where everybody knows their name… “Ryan.”
It all started with a flier put up in Brooklyn, and 2 1/2 years later, an online community has grown to thousands of Ryans connecting and meeting up for fun events.
Some of the newest members can’t believe how much it’s changed their lives.
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SAN FRANCISCO — Labor Day weekend shopping was in full swing in San Francisco Union Square Monday and so was the police presence.
After years of crime and just days after an attempted armed robbery and shooting of 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, shoppers said their safety is top of mind when shopping in the area.
“The stores are safe but the environment around Union Square — not so,” shopper Maya told CBS News Bay Area.
Tightly grasping their newly-purchased items is second nature for some shoppers who anticipate a need for heightened security in the popular shopping district, especially on a holiday weekend.
“I haven’t taken it off my hand literally,” she says, clutching a Banana Republic bag.
At least 10 police vehicles were on display around the square, plus an SFPD command center. Overall crime in the district is down 44 percent compared to last year according to the SFPD and robberies are down 17.6 percent.
According to police officials, Union Square is staffed with more officers than any other part of the city.
“I’ve been out here for at least seven years. I shop out here, I work out here, I do overtime out here, I shop here, I eat here. There’s nothing to be worried about here at all,” Officer Gary Kunaboot said.
Police presence appears to have an impact on shoppers.
“A lot of cops so that makes me feel like it’s working,” one shopper said.
Shoppers like Eranld say they feel confident shopping in the area regardless of the attempted robbery over the weekend.
“It’s sad but it doesn’t really affect me,” he said.
As for Maya, she doesn’t plan to do any high-dollar shopping in the area anytime soon.
“I wouldn’t buy that here,” she said. “Let’s just put it that way.”
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A Brooklyn man was indicted for allegedly committing several hate crimes in Manhattan.
Skiboky Store, 40, allegedly assaulted, stalked and harassed strangers in a series of anti-female, anti-white, and antisemitic incidents. He was charged with three counts of assault as a hate crime, one count of stalking as a hate crime, and one count of aggravated harassment.
“Skiboky Stora allegedly committed a series of hate-motivated incidents against several individuals based on their perceived gender, race and religion,” said District Attorney Bragg. “Much of what defines our city is respect and acceptance of all people. Nobody should have to fear for their safety because of their identity. I thank our prosecutors for their unwavering commitment in seeking justice for these victims.”
According to court documents, at 8 a.m. on Sept. 20, 2023, a 17-year-old white student walked past Stora near West 17th Street and 8th Avenue in Chelsea. As he walked by, Stora allegedly elbowed the student in the neck, causing pain, and said in substance, “You people think you can do whatever the f— you want.”
Then, at 8:10 a.m. on Oct. 26, 2023 a 37-year-old fair-skinned woman walked past Stora in the same vicinity as before and as she passed, Stora allegedly elbowed the victim’s left shoulder, causing pain and bruising.
Stora allegedly struck again on Nov. 18, 2023 at 9:30 a.m. when a 28-year-old woman and her 28-year-old husband, a white, Jewish couple, were walking their dogs in Union Square. As they approached East 15th Street and 5th Avenue, the woman allegedly saw Stora tearing down posters of kidnapped Israeli hostages and took a picture of him. After noticing the couple, Stora allegedly began to follow them around and shouted anti-white and antisemitic remarks, including, “F— you white boy.”
A Good Samaritan let the victims into her building to get them away from Stora, who allegedly followed them into the lobby shouting in substance, “Die, Jews, Die!”
Then, on March 25, 2024, a 23-year-old white woman was walking near West 17th Street and 7th Avenue in Chelsea at 10:20 a.m. As she passed Stora, he allegedly struck her in the head, causing her to fall to the ground. As a result, the victim suffered pain and swelling to the left side of her head.
Following a joint investigation conducted by the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, Stora was arrested two days after the most recent incident.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office said Tuesday night that they would not prosecute 22-year-old social media influencer Kai Cenat for the madness that devolved at Union Square on Aug. 4. Two others, Denzel Dennis and Muktar Din, will also not face prosecution for their roles in the riot that turned violent.
The DA’s office said that Cenat had already paid $55,000 in restitution, and the other two had each paid just over $1,000 each as well. Cenat also posted a lengthy apology on his Snapchat account, which would be reposted by Dennis and Din.
“When I promoted a give-away PS5s in Union Square Park it created an unintentional dangerous situation due to the way I promoted and advertised it. The result was an unsafe situation for the people who live and work in the neighborhood, first responders, and my followers that attended the event,” the apology read. “I apologize for the disruption and damage to the community, the park, the vehicles, and the storefronts in the area…I apologize to the first responders who had to endure the backlash of this irresponsible promotion and work to restore calm.”
He also offered an apology to his followers who went to the event and did not act out, saying it was “never my intent for it to get so out of hand.”
The DA’s office said the case would be officially dismissed after that apology was on social media for a full 24 hours. Prosecutors also said none of the trio had any new arrests since the incident.
Here’s what it looked like in Union Square during Kai Cenat pandemonium
Thousands of fans of Cenat, who has millions of followers on Twitch, YouTube and other platforms, showed up after Cenat announced that he would be there giving away video game consoles and other electronic devices that afternoon. A crowd of mostly young people packed into the park, with some running running through nearby streets, swinging objects at car windows and climbing on top of buses.
What exactly turned the crowd unruly isn’t quite clear, but by 3:30 p.m. people were seen throwing garbage at police and taking down barriers around the perimeter. Witnesses reported seeing others hurling chairs and bottles.
Police said several people — including officers — were injured, including at least four who were taken to hospitals. About 65 people were arrested, nearly half of whom were juveniles. Police estimated crowds swelled to 5,000-6,000 people.
Officers eventually pulled Cenat from the massive crowd, and he was seen speaking to several officials afterward.
The NYPD is ramping up its pursuit of the people who cause chaos in Union Square on Friday. Gus Rosendale reports.
Cenat, who grew up in the Bronx but now lives in Atlanta, said he had planned the event as a gift to his hometown.
“I am from NY and would never want to the city turned upside down due to unwanted, irresponsible, and dangerous behavior. I wanted to do something cool and fun for people and did not think it was going to turn into something that caused harm to the city, and I should have though more about the post before I announced it,” his apology on Snapchat read. “The actions of some of the people that attended were unacceptable. At no time is it ok to act out physically in situations like this or to destroy property or try to harm people…social media is a very powerful tool to do good, but it can also cause dangerous unwanted situations if it is not used properly.”
In a video posted on Twitch about a week after the chaos, Cenat said he was “beyond disappointed” in the bad behavior that occurred. Cenat was upset about what erupted from what he said was supposed to be a fun giveaway.
“I don’t condone any of the things that went on,” he said in the video, noting how some of his followers jumped on cars and hurled bottles during madness. “None of that is cool, bro, you feel what I’m saying?”
Who is Kai Cenat?
NBC New York’s Chris Glorioso reports on Kai Cenat, the social media and Twitch influencer who organized the reported game console giveaway Friday in Union Square.
Kai Cenat, who police said organized the giveaway that led to the chaotic scene, is a Twitch streamer and YouTuber who has been making online content since 2018, when he was still in high school. He is known for having a large fanbase, and in Feb. 2023, became the most-subscribed Twitch streamer of all time, with more than 100,000 subscribers.
He’s won awards for his content, which includes videos of him doing various challenges, online pranks and more. In addition to those videos, he gained following for videos where he chatted with viewers on his Twitch channel, which he started in 2021.
While it didn’t appear that Friday’s stunt was a prank of any sort, he has done other prank videos like pretending to break his brother’s PlayStation 4 controller, or knocking on neighbors doors and running away — a video which became his first one to break a million views.
Livestreamer Kai Cenat has been charged with at least two counts of inciting a riot and unlawful assembly, the New York Police Department confirmed to CBS News, after chaos erupted Friday afternoon when a large crowd gathered at Manhattan’s Union Square Park for his meet-and-greet and giveaway. Cenat has been scheduled for a desk appearance, police said, which is a notice to appear in court.
Things spiraled out of control at around 3 p.m., when some in the crowd could be seen tearing down construction barricades and hurling objects, including throwing some objects at responding police officers.
As the chaos unfolded, a vehicle, believed to have been carrying Cenat, attempted to leave. The crowd could be seen mobbing it. It moved slowly through throngs of people before eventually speeding off, with people clinging to the sides and back. At least three people could be seen tumbling off the vehicle onto the pavement as it sped away.
Cenat was taken into police custody for questioning at around 5 p.m. He did not have a permit for the event or preplan it with police.
Police confirmed Friday evening that Cenat would charged.
Earlier in the day, Cenat posted on social media that he would be there in person for the giveaway. He has more than 9 million combined followers on Twitch and other social media platforms.
“Once the people for the giveaway started coming out, that’s when, like, things started to get out of control because people started pushing and stuff,” one witness said.
“They didn’t even get to give away. They left right when everything happened,” said one individual.
“Why stay when things turned chaotic?” CBS New York’s Alice Gainer asked.
“I just felt like it was fun. Like, for me, it’s New York. It was literally YouTubers who came out to show love, and then s*** just got hectic,” he said.
NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said the post quickly went viral, which set the stage for the chaos that followed. Authorities estimated thousands of people showed up for the meet-and-greet and giveaway, which was 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.
Chopper 2 is checking out various stories around our area, including a crowd that has gathered in Union Square. Watch more on CBS News New York: https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live
Maddrey said some in the crowd stormed a construction site and began to hurl construction equipment, paint cans, bottles, rocks and more.
“You had people walking around with shovels, axes, and other tools from the construction trade. In addition, individuals were also lighting fireworks and flash bombs. They were throwing them towards police, and they were throwing them at each other,” Maddrey said.
As the chaos unfolded, Chopper 2 was overhead and spotted people climbing on top of the roof covering the entrance to the Union Square subway station. Others were seen climbing on statues, lamp posts and cars. One person was seen setting off a fire extinguisher, sending huge smoky plumes over the crowd.
The NYPD ultimately called for a massive response – a Level 4 mobilization with roughly 1,000 officers.
Police ultimately declared the gathering an unlawful assembly. They then began warning the crowd to disperse.
“The NYPD offered multiple – and I do mean multiple – opportunities for the crowd to leave. We tried to give them a means of egress for them to exit the park and exit the streets. After numerous warnings and after being assailed, hit with rocks and bottles and other debris, we started to make arrests to clear out the park,” Maddrey said.
“They just went up right here, walking against traffic, like, raging,” one witness said.
Some businesses locked their doors as the crowd ran through.
A 69-year-old man who operates a sidewalk food stand was injured and had items stolen. He told CBS New York he was hit in the head and on his shoulders.
Maddrey said several officers sustained injuries. He said he himself had also been struck by objects.
Those initial responding officers, however, were not in riot gear, wearing helmets, or carrying shields – a clear difference from how they responded to George Floyd protests.
As the situation escalated, officers could be seen with helmets and shields.
“Our officers exercised great restraint despite the aggression they were met with and the acts of violence they were met with,” Maddrey said.
Police say 65 arrests were made. Thirty of those arrested are juveniles.
“At this time, we successfully dispersed the park. But we still have crowds mulling around Manhattan, and we have officers following them, preventing them from destroying property, looting and other things like that,” Maddrey said.
“We have encountered things like this before, but never to this level of dangerousness, where young people would not listen to our commands. They were fighting each other. They were hurting each other, and they were turning [their] attacks on us, and we had to make arrests,” Maddrey said.
Maddrey said it highlighted the power and danger of social media. The event was not preplanned, and was spontaneous.
“We can’t allow this to happen again in the future,” Maddrey said. “Listen, we’re not against young people having a good time. We’re not against young people gathering. But it can’t be to this level, where it’s dangerous. A lot of people got hurt today.”
New York City subways bypassed Union Square station.
It took hours to get the crowd out of the park and hours to clean up the mess.
NEW YORK – Chaos erupted Friday after a large crowd gathered at Manhattan’s Union Square Park for livestreamer Kai Cenat’s giveaway.
Some of the crowd could be seen tearing down construction barricades and hurling objects, including throwing some objects at responding police officers.
As one vehicle attempted to leave – which is believed to have been carrying Cenat – the crowd could be seen mobbing it. It moved slowly through throngs of people before eventually speeding off, with people clinging to the sides and back. At least three people could be seen tumbling off the vehicle onto the pavement as it sped away.
Cenat was taken into police custody for questioning at around 5 p.m. CBS New York’s Marcia Kramer reported exclusively Cenat did not have a permit for the event.
Earlier in the day, he posted on social media that he would be there in person for the giveaway.
NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said the post quickly went viral.
“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.
Maddrey said some in the crowd stormed a construction site and began to hurl construction equipment, paint cans, bottles, rocks, and more.
“You had people walking around with shovels, axes, and other tools from the construction trade. In addition, individuals were also lighting firecrackers. They were throwing them towards police, and they were throwing them at each other,” Maddrey said.
Chopper 2 is checking out various stories around our area, including a crowd that has gathered in Union Square. Watch more on CBS News New York: https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live
As the chaos unfolded, Chopper 2 was overhead and spotted people climbing on top of the roof covering the entrance to the Union Square subway station. One person was seen setting off a fire extinguisher, sending huge smoky plumes over the crowd.
Authorities estimated some 2,000 people showed up for the meet-and-greet and giveaway, which was to involve hundreds of video game consoles.
While the crowd gathered as early as 1 p.m., the raucous behavior broke out roughly around 3 p.m. or so.
The NYPD called for a massive response – a Level 4 mobilization, meaning roughly 1,000 officers – after people began demolishing construction barricades, throwing objects, and standing on top of the Union Square subway entrance. Several people could be seen being placed into custody.
