UCLA law enforcement officials said Wednesday that dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters arrested in a campus parking lot earlier this week were carrying tools and other items intended to take over campus buildings. announced that he had it.
Members of the group were found in possession of several metal pipes, bolt cutters, superglue, a padlock and a long chain, UCLA police said. They also had literature, including the “Do-It-Yourself Occupation Guide'' and the “Arrest Release Primer.''
Police initially arrested 44 people and charged most of them with criminal conspiracy, the statement said. Two local journalists were among those detained, but they were taken to Los Angeles police custody and released without charge. Police said he did not have media credentials. A third person was also released without charge.
Sean Beckner Carmitchel, a freelance journalist who has been covering the UCLA protests, was one of two journalists arrested. He said he happened upon them in the parking lot after the students were detained and began filming. His arrest “came out of nowhere,” he said.
“The idea that someone who was clearly there to film was behind the scenes is completely cuckoo bananas,” he added.
Police said 35 of those arrested were UCLA students. The four people arrested on Monday were also arrested on May 2, when police closed down a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus. Police said 41 people were arrested, questioned and released.
The pro-Palestinian protesters who led the UCLA camp could not be reached for comment Wednesday. “These illegal arrests are harassment and abuse of power by law enforcement, and are simply intimidation tactics,” the UCLA Palestine Solidarity Camp said in a statement after Monday's arrests.
The Do-It Yourself Occupation Guide includes techniques for bypassing alarm systems, breaking into buildings, and securing doors. The original manual, written more than a decade ago, said: “In response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine, and in light of the national resurgence of student jobs starting at Columbia University in New York in 2024. ” It was updated this year. Editor's note.
The UCLA Police Department said a demonstration was taking place inside Moore Hall, a campus building that students had encouraged to occupy on social media, while 44 people were in custody. Police said it had become “clear” that the arrested protesters were planning to use the materials to take over Moorhall.
Another guide that was featured in evidence during the mass arrests was “Fight to Win: Protest Tactics and Staying Safe.” It describes police formations and includes advice on how to stay safe during protests. There's also a section on protest gear such as umbrellas and fire extinguishers, both of which were used by demonstrators when police raided an encampment at UCLA last week.
Many of the universities' pro-Palestinian camps have been set up in the central square or on campus lawns, but some demonstrators have gone further, occupying buildings and destroying property. Police quickly thwarted a takeover at Columbia University's Hamilton Hall in New York last week, and law enforcement officers also called off a weeklong takeover of the administration building at California Institute of Technology Humboldt.
UCLA administrators initially took a relatively lenient approach to the school's camps, even though protesters at some universities, such as the University of Southern California, were arrested within hours. But a few days later, on April 30, Principal Gene Block declared the encampment illegal and ordered the protesters to leave.
Later that night, opposition demonstrators attacked the demonstration site, with some beating pro-Palestinian demonstrators with sticks, using chemical spray, and setting off fireworks as weapons. Police and security personnel failed to quell the brawl for several hours and made no arrests. In the early morning hours of May 2, police destroyed the encampment and arrested more than 200 protesters.