Neighbors raise funds to help fix vehicle flipped by crowd during Super Bowl rampage

Community members in North Philadelphia are raising funds for a man whose car was damaged after being flipped multiple times before the Super Bowl.

Before the game even started, a group of people were caught on video going on a destructive rampage near Temple University. Video shows them flipping a vehicle that belonged to Richard Pierce and damaging several others. Pierce’s car was flipped multiple times, resulting in a smashed windshield, broken door handles, and missing rearview mirrors.

A fundraiser, organized by neighbors of Arlington St., originally set out to raise $4,000 dollars for Pierce, who has lived in the neighborhood for nearly 30 years. The fundraiser quickly surpassed expectations, raising more than $10,000 so far.

Organizers Matthew Asobayire and Matthew Giovannini, both students at Temple University, said the goodwill of the community “outweighs the bad.”

“That was a very inaccurate representation of Temple students and how our community handles themselves,” Asobayire said. “We’re trying our best to right it. We’re trying our best to move on from this, learn from it, make sure that it doesn’t happen again.”

“It’s mind blowing, it’s crazy,” Giovannini said. “We never thought it would get this big. It’s honestly so amazing that after what happened on Sunday that the community showed out, and people from outside the Temple community, too, they’re just pouring their support in for our neighbor and for the community, and it’s really amazing to see.”

On Monday, police released photos of nine people believed to be responsible for the damages. Temple Police is investigating.