![Mysterious stashes of bricks are being found nearby protest sites and social media users are asking where they came from](https://www.theblaze.com/media-library/mysterious-stashes-of-bricks-are-being-found-nearby-protest-sites-and-social-media-users-are-asking-where-they-came-from.png?id=23365185&width=1245&height=700&quality=85&coordinates=0%2C5%2C0%2C6)
Image Source: Twitter screenshot
Is it a setup?
Social media users have been reporting mysterious piles of bricks in cities across the country in recent days, stoking speculation that the stashes are being planted to encourage violence amid the countrywide protests over George Floyd's death.
On Sunday, police confirmed the existence of such piles in Kansas City, urging residents to notify police if they discover any new stashes.
"We have learned of & discovered stashes of bricks and rocks in & around the Plaza and Westport to be used during a riot," police said in a tweet. "If you see anything like this, you can text 911 and let us know so we can remove them."
Rioters in Manhattan reportedly happened upon a pile lying in the street Sunday night despite it not being clear what the bricks would be used for in terms of construction.
In Dallas, Instagram user @reubengotsoul said he was disappointed to see a "RANDOM stack of bricks in front of the courthouse," adding that he believed it was a setup.
Famous rapper and actor ICE T commented on another video that captured more piles of bricks lying nearby an ongoing protest, saying, "Looks like a set up to me... There's ALWAYS more than meets the eye.."
While the videos to this point are unconfirmed, their existence certainly does raise suspicion that nefarious groups are planting stashes to instigate violence.
In a statement on Saturday, Attorney General William Barr asserted that many of the riots plaguing the country in the last week have been the result of leftist radicals exploiting peaceful protests to pursue their own agenda.
"In many places, it appears the violence is planned, organized, and driven by anarchistic and far-left extremists, using Antifa-like tactics, many of whom travel from out of state to promote the violence," he said.
President Trump also expressed concern over the weekend that a majority of the rioters in some places were from out of state, insinuating that riots may have been intentionally organized.
According to a Daily Mail report, authorities in Washington, D.C., and New York City confirmed that law enforcement believed the violent riots to be the result of planning and organization.