JFC, Who even talks like that?!?!?!? What kind of people ARE these? ( don’t answer that, it’s rhetorical ) Some of the comments are just nonsensical. Literally not even connected to reality of any kind. 
No surprise that the racism is off the charts… Probably the most unsurprising thing.
Clearly, it’s economic anxiety. /s
Your interpretation may well be correct, but letting them go could be a ploy.
A lot is now known about these guys, and their phones have been searched (I hope), and some of them may reconnect with their hoodlum friends. And who knows, some may have been flipped.