Downtown San Francisco is quickly becoming an undesirable area due to an increase in crime and homelessness. The statistics show an 11 percent rise in robberies and an alarming 83 percent surge in murders in just this year. The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that major news organizations like ABC News are cautioning their staff against reporting live from the downtown area early in the morning due to safety concerns.
During his coverage on the closure of the Westfield Mall, a prominent retail establishment in the vicinity, Matt Gutman, the chief national correspondent for ABC News, revealed that the official reason for the closure was a decline in foot traffic and sales. However, Gutman stated that the actual cause was a growing number of robberies fueled by the fentanyl epidemic. Notably, the previous week witnessed a cigarette outlet losing $100,000 worth of merchandise through theft, and an ice cream store being targeted by armed robbers twice in a single morning.
The claims made by the Democrat Mayor of San Francisco, London Breed, were met with skepticism. She downplayed the focus on businesses leaving the city and instead emphasized the influx of new businesses and residents, referring to San Francisco as a vibrant and diverse city. However, when pressed for examples of significant-sized businesses relocating and establishing their operations in San Francisco, Breed was unable to provide any.
Even Elon Musk has joined the discussion, stating that several of his San Francisco-based staff members have expressed concerns about the surging crime rate. Some of them allegedly fear coming to work due to personal experiences of being mugged or having their car windows smashed by criminals. Musk attributed this situation to a District Attorney appointed by George Soros, whom he claimed to be “pro-criminal” and unwilling to prosecute such crimes, resulting in a lack of effective police response.
