'NOT TRADITIONAL LAW, JUST CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR' | Police charge 11 over Alice Springs looting rampage triggered by murder accused's arrest

The unrest erupted on Thursday night when 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis was brought to the hospital for medical treatment after being arrested in connection with the murder of a five-year-old Aboriginal girl.

The child had been reported missing from an Aboriginal town camp on April 25, with her body discovered on Thursday around 5km from Old Timers Camp.

Lewis has since been formally charged with murder and two counts of sexual intercourse without consent, and was flown to Darwin for his own safety after being pulled from what police described as a "sustained attack" by community members at the time of his arrest.

He is due to face court for the first time on Tuesday.

But while detectives have been pressing forward with the murder investigation, a parallel inquiry has been ramping up into the violent unrest that engulfed parts of the Alice Springs CBD in the hours after Lewis's arrest — including what police are now describing not as grief or cultural protest, but as plain criminal looting.

The footage that has shocked the territory

NT Police on Sunday morning released chilling CCTV footage of an alleged mass looting incident at a service station on Bagot Street, just metres from the hospital where Lewis was being treated.

The 90-second clip shows the moment dozens of hooded individuals swarm the small shopfront.

At the beginning of the footage, a single person is seen leaping through a window as the crowd outside tries to force open the sliding door.

Once inside, the same individual vaults over a drinks fridge before triggering the door-release button — instantly opening the floodgates.

Within seconds, the shop is overwhelmed.

Stacks of toilet paper are knocked flying. Shelves of food and drink are stripped bare.

Two women can be seen ripping the entire top shelf off an aisle, sending packaged goods scattering across the floor.

Detective Acting Superintendent Michael Ordelman said the service station — along with a nearby supermarket — had sustained collective damage and stock losses estimated at more than $200,000 from what he described as "outright looting."

Investigators are now wading through what Acting Superintendent Ordelman said was "hundreds of hours" of combined CCTV and media footage from the night.

"We've identified a number of people from that footage, either because they are known to the investigators and detectives reviewing the matter, or because other members of the community have offered police information," he said.

So far, two people had voluntarily handed themselves in to police.

A further five were arrested on Saturday, and another six were taken into custody on Sunday and were awaiting charging in the Alice Springs watch house.

'Plain and simple criminal behaviour'

Commissioner Dole was clear in his assessment of the footage — and forceful in rejecting any suggestion the unrest could be framed as anything other than criminal opportunism.

"If you recognise people involved when you watch this footage — or if you were involved — I would encourage you to contact the Northern Territory Police, or come and hand yourself in before we come for you," he said.

Some of those present at the hospital on Thursday night reportedly invoked "payback" — a term used in Aboriginal customary law in Central Australia for traditional punishment, usually carried out by elders to restore balance between Indigenous families and groups.

But Commissioner Dole was emphatic that what unfolded across the CBD that night bore no resemblance to traditional practices.

"What you will see in this footage is not people processing grief in relation to the death of baby Kumanjayi," he said.

"What you will see is not people trying to practise traditional law. What you will see is criminal behaviour, plain and simple."

"It's abhorrent, it's disgusting, and it will not be tolerated or accepted by the Northern Territory Police — and it should not be accepted by the community."

His view was echoed earlier in the week by Alyawarre man and Alice Springs local Michael Liddle, who urged people not to misuse the term "payback" to justify violence.

"Bringing the word 'payback' into this scenario just fuels violence," Mr Liddle said.

"There's a system set up here, where there is a person in custody and the Western rules will deal with that person."

Calls for calm continue

Kumanjayi Little Baby's grandfather, senior Yapa (Warlpiri) elder Robin Granites, issued a public plea for calm in the days following her death, asking the community to allow the legal process to run its course.

"What has happened this week is not our way," Mr Granites said.

"This man has been caught, thanks to community action, and we must now let justice take its course while we take the time to mourn Kumanjayi Little Baby and support our family."

Police have urged anyone with information about the looting incidents — or anyone who recognises individuals in the released footage — to contact NT Police immediately or come forward voluntarily.

More arrests are expected in the coming days as investigators continue to work through the footage.