Multiple teens have been arrested for allegedly assaulting three U.S. Marines in San Clemente, California.
On Tuesday, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said it had arrested “five juvenile suspects” in connection with the incident.
Four of the alleged assailants were male, and one was female.
The department explained, “Due to the suspects being juveniles, no further information will be released regarding them at this time.”
“Also, due to the nature of the incident and the large number of individuals involved, the investigation is ongoing,” it added.
San Clemente Mayor Chris Duncan said four other minors were arrested, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The paper noted the arrests stem from a brawl reportedly involving nearly 30 teens that took place over Memorial Day weekend.
Duncan decried the assault as he said, “The barbaric assault on off-duty Marines at the San Clemente Pier goes against everything we stand for in San Clemente, and it’s no excuse that teenagers were involved.”
“I want to assure our community, especially our military and veteran community, that we take this matter with the utmost seriousness and will not tolerate this kind of behavior in our city,” he continued.
The mayor added, “The fact that this incident occurred over Memorial Day weekend is particularly tragic.”
A video of the incident surfaced on social media sparking outrage.
Horrific video shows the moment a group of self-identified US Marines were savagely beaten by as many as 40 teenagers after the service members confronted them about their unruly behavior on a #California beach. pic.twitter.com/FLEpfLwFlj
— Human Dilemma (@HumanDilemma_) May 30, 2023
Hunter Antonino identified himself as one of the Marines in the video.
He told KCAL News the incident started after the teens were told to stop lighting fireworks.
