TikTok’s New Jersey beach party ends with 16 arrests after thousands show up
TikTok: stuffed_0live / ogden1Police have reportedly arrested 16 people in New Jersey after thousands of people showed up to a beach party that was promoted on TikTok and other social media platforms.
TikTok is often a place people go to promote huge events and attract attendees, whether that’s an official event, or an informal hangout.
However, sometimes these events can grow much bigger than anticipated, which often leads to the police getting involved.
In May 2022, the Adrian’s Kickbackparty attracted thousands of attendees, with police showing up and attempting to disperse the crowds, making several arrests.
It was a similar case for a party in Long Branch, New Jersey, on May 21, with the “Beach Linkup” event being promoted across social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. One post advertising the event claimed there would be “music, eats, fun, YouTubers, and good vibez.”
Thousands of people showed up to the event, and videos posted on TikTok show police attempting to disperse the crowds.
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Long Branch Public Safety Director Domingos Saldida reportedly said: “There were no permits for (this gathering). It was not authorized by the city in any way. It’s something people have been doing across the country and that people have been doing here in New Jersey, where they just show up and they take over public spaces and cause a public disturbance.”
According to NJ.com, police made 16 arrests as a result of the event, and the fights that happened along with the sheer number of people that turned up led to them declaring a 9 pm curfew.
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Prosecutors also reportedly said that Department of Corrections officers “deployed disorientation devices, specifically a single flash-bang as well as smoke, ‘in limited situations in response to fights taking place and bottles and rocks being thrown where the crowd would not disperse.'”
This is not likely to be the last event that leads to police involvement when attracting large crowds following social media promotion.