Those arrested or cited during the mayhem in Newport Beach on the Fourth of July were mostly split between California and Arizona residents, ranging from age 13 to 39, according to data provided by the Newport Beach Police Department.
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Of all detained or arrested by police, only 10 were Newport Beach residents, the data shows.
Police officers from around Orange County helped to detain 353 people directly involved in the chaotic scene along the coastline on the Balboa Peninsula. Of those, 316 people were cited for misdemeanors and 37 were arrested, including 25 juvenile arrests, the data shows.
In total, 161 of those arrested or cited were from California, while 145 were from Arizona, with those cited ranging from as far away as Ontario, Canada and the Netherlands.
The crimes that those arrested were accused of committing were not included in the data provided by the police department.
Officers from across Orange County showed up en masse to the shoreline to assist 350 Newport Beach police officers after an “invasion” of juveniles and young adults came to the Newport Pier area in a short time, according to City Manager Simeone Jurjis.
As the crowd rapidly grew, people engaged in increasingly dangerous and unlawful behavior,. blocking roadways, restricting emergency vehicle access and throwing mortars, fireworks and other projectiles at officers, reportedly injuring one, officials said.
Video showed officers on horseback attempting to clear the beach, while also closing it down from 22nd Street to 36th Street about 3 p.m. Saturday.
A Pavilions supermarket on West Balboa Boulevard was ransacked at one point and video from the scene showed groups of people detained and being transported on Orange County Transportation Authority buses.
The Newport Beach Police Association blamed a post on social media for starting the trouble, labeling the event an alleged “TikTok Takeover,” but the association’s president declined to comment when asked for more specifics.
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Jurjis on Monday said he wasn’t sure what drew the crowds to Newport Beach, whether it may have been the work of social media influencers or possibly some who wanted to flout the city’s “Not in Newport” campaign.
The city manager said 200 people were encircled by police and arrested after they refused to leave an area near the pier.
He also said he would likely reach out to the governor of Arizona and, if necessary, to some of the Arizona universities, if there is a link indicating that those arrested are students there.
Councilmember Joe Stapleton, whose district includes the Balboa Peninsula, said Monday that the Fourth of July crowd was a surprise and that “we’ll figure out what went wrong, what went right, and how to combat this for next year, because we’re not going to let that happen again.”
Of the 37 arrested, 22 were from California, 11 were from Arizona and there was one each from Utah, Florida, Michigan and Alabama, the police data show. Of those arrested, 10 were from Orange County, with two being from Newport Beach.
Of the 316 people who were cited, 139 were from California and 134 were from Arizona, the data show, 50 of whom were from Orange County, with eight Newport Beach residents.
A total of 34 Inland Empire residents were either cited or arrested and 40 were from Los Angeles County, the data show.
Other states represented in the data included Texas, Ohio, Nebraska and Massachusetts.
City leaders said in 2025 that more than 500 people were arrested during Spring Break season, with another 79 arrested on the Fourth of July, prompting them to focus on preparations to deal with revelers during the holiday this year.
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