SAN DIEGO (CNS) - Eight people were taken into custody Thursday in connection with violence that broke out during dueling demonstrations in Pacific Beach on the part of supporters and opponents of then-President Donald Trump.
During the raucous rallies on the afternoon of Jan. 9, about 100 Trump supporters and a comparable number of counter-demonstrators clashed at the intersection of Mission Boulevard and Hornblend Street, growing increasingly belligerent until a large contingent of San Diego Police Department personnel arrived to separate them.
The arrestees, whose names were not immediately available, allegedly carried out a total of eight attacks during the fracas, victimizing 16 people, according to a brief SDPD statement released Thursday night. A ninth suspect remains at large, the department advised.
Among those targeted by the violence were officers pelted by eggs, rocks and bottles and doused with pepper spray, according to police.
The two rallies began about 1 p.m. near the entrance to Crystal Pier. Roughly 90 minutes later, as the chaos intensified, police declared the combined throng an unlawful assembly and ordered the demonstrators to leave the area.
No serious injuries were reported.
Thursday's arrests took place in San Diego and Los Angeles counties. During the multi-agency operation, officers seized three guns and drugs along with ammunition and body armor, according to SDPD officials.
