ATLANTA — Enes Kanter with the Portland Trail Blazers said he was "shocked and disgusted" when he learned his little brother had been robbed in Atlanta on Sunday.
The center took to Twitter to share security video of the dangerous moments involving his brother, Ahmet, and call for stronger gun control.
"We need to keep demanding peace & change, and stop putting guns in peoples hands," he wrote.
11Alive asked Atlanta Police about the incident and were pointed to a statement released by the department late Sunday. According to police, the incident occurred around 4 a.m. in the 100 block of Courtland Street NE.
Police said their officers met with three male victims who said they were robbed at gunpoint by four young males. The victims said they first encountered them in the 1400 block of Piedmont Avenue where the suspects allegedly began harassing them. One victim said that his necklace was snatched from his neck during that encounter.
The victim got it back and they left the location, but the victims said they were again approached at Courtland Street. This time, police said, two of the suspects pointed guns at the victims demanding they hand over their belongings.
Police said the robbery suspects may have escaped in a gold sedan. At this point, many details are still under investigation.
In his message, Enes Kanter said the incident was "not okay & not normal."
The video he shared, which is roughly 40 seconds long, shows the incident as it appeared to be happening in a parking garage. It shows one of the armed men, though others are obscured from view due to the camera's location.
The video shows the victims with their hands up before they eventually began throwing their items on the ground. The suspects are showing scooping up the items and running from the location.
The robbery comes as Atlanta handles a recent increase in certain crimes - many involving guns. The spike in crime has also gotten the attention of the mayor who, in January, instituted an action plan to help deal with it.
As for Kanter's message, it has since gotten a strong response with numerous comments, hundreds of retweets, and over 1,000 likes. The video of his brother's robbery, meanwhile, has been viewed more than 27,000 times.
