Police Beef Up Patrol for Hells Angels’ Arrival
Police from throughout the county patrolled the streets of Ventura on Sunday, anticipating the arrival of an estimated 1,000 Hells Angels who are expected to thunder through downtown today as part of their 50th anniversary celebration ride, officials said.
Officers from the Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula and Simi Valley police departments, along with Ventura County sheriff’s deputies, were out in force alongside Ventura police, said Lt. Don Arth of the Ventura Police Department. There was also an undetermined number of unmarked patrol cars in the downtown area.
As a small contingency of Hells Angels already arrived in town by midafternoon, no serious incidents were reported, Arth said.
“Not knowing how many would arrive on Sunday, we staffed accordingly,” he said.
Arth would not indicate how many additional officers were brought in to help out, but he said several agencies will remain in Ventura until the completion of the World Run, as the anniversary ride is called. The ride is expected to be in Ventura today through Wednesday.
Police in San Bernardino did not report any problems in that town, where the World Run party started Saturday at the Hells Angels’ local chapter clubhouse. The San Bernardino chapter, founded 50 years ago this month, was the first in the nation.
“It’s been very quiet,” a spokeswoman for the San Bernardino Police Department said Sunday.
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