Article (archive)
Two teens in California broke into an unfinished billion-dollar NBA arena in the middle of the night, even shooting some hoops, for the world — and outraged local officials — to see on social media.
The juveniles seemingly entered the Intuit Dome, the future home of the Clippers, in Inglewood, Calif., when they climbed an orange work ladder outside the construction grounds, the over 90-second TikTok video posted Thursday showed.
The brazen duo recorded themselves strolling around the empty stadium’s hallways and bleachers, then shooting basketballs on an uncompleted court.
The video shows that one suspect, who wore Los Angeles Lakers pajama pants and Crocs, used work buckets to try a slam dunk before he sprayed a fire extinguisher at the hoop.
They then were seen climbing up onto the bridge in the rafters before making their way onto the roof.
From there, the teens posed for the camera, again showing their faces, and took panoramic shots of the city’s skyline before the video ended.
Doubling down on their illicit activities, they even captioned the video “Breaking into Clippers stadium,” and hashtagged the Clippers, Lakers, and LeBron James.
Inglewood Mayor James E. Butts has since identified the pair and their parents.
The over 90-second TikTok video shows the teens illegally exploring the stadium, even shooting basketball on the unfinished court.
One of the teens was seen spraying a fire extinguisher at the hoop after taking some shots, perhaps taking the phrase "that shot was fire" a bit too seriously.
“It will be very clear to these young men — and to people who are TikTok followers — that you have a moment of TikTok greatness followed by a little bit of misery. And so we don’t play around with these things,” Butts told ABC 7.
“When you have construction sites, they’re nuisances and they attract kids and they attract people who wants to steal tools,” Butts added. “The fact of the matter is, that’s what happens when you build a major project.”
Butts said security will be “bumped” up at the privately funded arena as the city is fully aware of the careless criminal behavior flaunted across social media.
The juveniles made no effort to hide their face in the video, as infamy matters more than juvie.
Mayor James Butts said security will be “bumped” up at the privately funded arena, from a single guard to a whopping two guards.
“What’s going to happen is they’re going to increase the off-construction hour times security,” Butts told Fox 11 Los Angeles.
The Clippers broke ground on the arena in September 2021 and is set to open in August. According to USA Today, the Clippers spent $2 billion on the project.
Inglewood police told the outlet there was no sign of vandalism in the unfinished stadium.
It is not clear if the juveniles were charged with trespassing — a misdemeanor in California — but could face up to 6 months in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
The Intuit Dome’s exterior is seen under construction in Inglewood, Calif. on Jan. 16, 2024.
Intuit Dome is only about four miles from Los Angeles International Airport.
Multiple videos on the account reveal the alarming trend of them breaking into sporting venues.
A video posted in July 2023 shows one of the juveniles scaling a fence outside Sofi Stadium and then making his way onto the field while another records him in step.
The same teens are seen on video sneaking into Dodger’s Stadium over the summer.
In another video posted in August, the same teens snuck into Dodgers Stadium and recorded themselves on the field — this time in broad daylight.
The most recent video of them breaking into the Clippers new facility has been viewed over 140K times as of Sunday morning, facing backlash for the daring stunt.
“They gonna make a example out of you,” one person commented.
“With laker sweatpants is villainous lol,” another joked.
“Posting this is crazy,” another stated.
Original video (WARNING: HAZARDOUS LEVELS OF TIKTOK CRINGE)
Two teens in California broke into an unfinished billion-dollar NBA arena in the middle of the night, even shooting some hoops, for the world — and outraged local officials — to see on social media.
The juveniles seemingly entered the Intuit Dome, the future home of the Clippers, in Inglewood, Calif., when they climbed an orange work ladder outside the construction grounds, the over 90-second TikTok video posted Thursday showed.
The brazen duo recorded themselves strolling around the empty stadium’s hallways and bleachers, then shooting basketballs on an uncompleted court.
The video shows that one suspect, who wore Los Angeles Lakers pajama pants and Crocs, used work buckets to try a slam dunk before he sprayed a fire extinguisher at the hoop.
They then were seen climbing up onto the bridge in the rafters before making their way onto the roof.
From there, the teens posed for the camera, again showing their faces, and took panoramic shots of the city’s skyline before the video ended.
Doubling down on their illicit activities, they even captioned the video “Breaking into Clippers stadium,” and hashtagged the Clippers, Lakers, and LeBron James.
Inglewood Mayor James E. Butts has since identified the pair and their parents.
The over 90-second TikTok video shows the teens illegally exploring the stadium, even shooting basketball on the unfinished court.
One of the teens was seen spraying a fire extinguisher at the hoop after taking some shots, perhaps taking the phrase "that shot was fire" a bit too seriously.
“It will be very clear to these young men — and to people who are TikTok followers — that you have a moment of TikTok greatness followed by a little bit of misery. And so we don’t play around with these things,” Butts told ABC 7.
“When you have construction sites, they’re nuisances and they attract kids and they attract people who wants to steal tools,” Butts added. “The fact of the matter is, that’s what happens when you build a major project.”
Butts said security will be “bumped” up at the privately funded arena as the city is fully aware of the careless criminal behavior flaunted across social media.
The juveniles made no effort to hide their face in the video, as infamy matters more than juvie.
Mayor James Butts said security will be “bumped” up at the privately funded arena, from a single guard to a whopping two guards.
“What’s going to happen is they’re going to increase the off-construction hour times security,” Butts told Fox 11 Los Angeles.
The Clippers broke ground on the arena in September 2021 and is set to open in August. According to USA Today, the Clippers spent $2 billion on the project.
Inglewood police told the outlet there was no sign of vandalism in the unfinished stadium.
It is not clear if the juveniles were charged with trespassing — a misdemeanor in California — but could face up to 6 months in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
The Intuit Dome’s exterior is seen under construction in Inglewood, Calif. on Jan. 16, 2024.
Intuit Dome is only about four miles from Los Angeles International Airport.
Multiple videos on the account reveal the alarming trend of them breaking into sporting venues.
A video posted in July 2023 shows one of the juveniles scaling a fence outside Sofi Stadium and then making his way onto the field while another records him in step.
The same teens are seen on video sneaking into Dodger’s Stadium over the summer.
In another video posted in August, the same teens snuck into Dodgers Stadium and recorded themselves on the field — this time in broad daylight.
The most recent video of them breaking into the Clippers new facility has been viewed over 140K times as of Sunday morning, facing backlash for the daring stunt.
“They gonna make a example out of you,” one person commented.
“With laker sweatpants is villainous lol,” another joked.
“Posting this is crazy,” another stated.
Original video (WARNING: HAZARDOUS LEVELS OF TIKTOK CRINGE)
