Obama on Baltimore riots: 'They're not making a statement — they're stealing'

President Obama on Tuesday said there was "no excuse" for Monday's violence and destruction in Baltimore following the funeral for Freddie Gray, the black man who died in police custody of an unexplained spinal injury.

"They're not protesting, they're not making statement — they're stealing," Obama said.

"It's a handful of people taking advantage of the situation for their own purposes, and they need to be treated as criminal," he added.

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Obama also lambasted rioters for having "distracted" from the peaceful, positive message preached by protesters in the preceding days. And broadening his focus to the recent spate of police killings of unarmed black men, Obama said it raised "troubling questions" and exposed deep-seated problems regarding police interactions with the communities they serve.

"There are some police who aren't doing the right thing," Obama said.