Far-right activist Jake Lang was arrested Saturday after a planned demonstration outside Minneapolis City Hall sparked counterprotests in downtown Minneapolis.5 A helicopter and EYEWITNESS NEWS crews were in the air and on the ground at the scene. At one point, some supporters and protesters clashed, pushing each other. Lang appeared to be in a car, with dozens of people following him. Jake Lang Rally and Counter-Protests in Minneapolis (KSTP) Edward Jacob Lang, better known as Jake Lang, announced on July 24 that he would return to Minneapolis for a “peaceful rally for free speech.” Lang, a rioter pardoned on Jan. 6, said Shiloh Hendrix was a guest. It is unclear if Hendrix was present Saturday. RELATED: Lawyer Files Appeal in Shiloh Hendrix Racial Slur Case As previously reported, Hendrix was found guilty of directing racial slurs at an 8-year-old girl with autism on a Rochester playground. The 37-year-old man was found not guilty of the first charge of misdemeanor disorderly conduct, but was found guilty of the second charge for the interaction with the cameraman.5 EYEWITNESS NEWS crews on the scene said Lang left the area with police monitoring the demonstration. Lang did not get out of his car. In an update from Minneapolis police, investigators said they arrested Lang and others after the event. According to police, at 11:50 a.m. Lang arrived at City Hall with six other people in two vehicles. At a news conference, Interim Police Chief Bill Peterson said police knew about the event in advance and had planned for it, placing a “significant number of personnel” in the area and barriers around City Hall to create a safe separation between protesters and vehicle traffic. However, as the vehicles approached Forest Street and Third Avenue South, Peterson said both vehicles unexpectedly headed onto the sidewalk toward a crowd of people. Police said the vehicles were traveling slowly, but others quickly surrounded both vehicles. “Almost immediately, a confrontation developed between members of the crowd and individuals associated with both vehicles,” Peterson said. “Individuals on both sides deployed a chemical irritant believed to be mace. Officers then approached the vehicles and ordered both of them off the sidewalk and out of the area, police said. The acting chief said several officers were struck by thrown objects as they attempted to move the vehicles off the sidewalk and away from others. According to Peterson, three police officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries during the incident, including one officer who has since been taken to the hospital. has been released. Peterson said officers allowed both vehicles to leave the area once they created a road to deescalate the situation, but both were later detained with the help of other agencies. The Minnesota State Patrol stopped the first vehicle near Washington Avenue and southbound I-35W. Minneapolis police later arrested all three on probable cause riot charges: Eric Wayne Dawson, 53 Stephen Edward Major, 42 Matthew Pike Oduguwa, 33 Oduguwa was taken into custody. to the hospital for a medical evaluation for chest pain and was transported to the Hennepin County Jail after he was medically released Bloomington police stopped the second vehicle, which police said contained four people, including Lang, near Lindau Lane and IKEA Way Minneapolis police later arrested the four people for disorderly conduct with probable cause: Charles Oscar Miles Jr., 73 John William-Kei Irwin, 32 Jayden Daniel Scott, 23 Edward Jacob Lang, 31. Minneapolis police said Lang was transported to a hospital for an “apparent non-life-threatening injury that was not related to his arrest.” After he was released, he was also taken to the Hennepin County Jail. “That (driving on the sidewalk) was the main law that was violated to start everything,” Peterson said. of Lang’s group, four other people were arrested outside City Hall: Tanner Duncan, 29, arrested for disorderly conduct and obstruction of legal process William Nicholas Love, 33, arrested for assault Matthew Norby, 37, arrested for probable cause of disorderly conduct Norby was taken to a hospital to evaluate his chest pain and was taken to jail after he was medically cleared. condemned Lang’s actions during the press conference. “People on both sides can express their First Amendment rights even when I find what they say abhorrent, and that’s certainly the case with Jake Lang,” Frey said. “And anyway, if you’re going to come here, you’re going to drive on the sidewalk, you’re going to incite a riot and you’re going to be a problem for people’s safety, then you’re going to get arrested and that was exactly the case with Jake Lang.” Lang’s January 17 appearance in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge. Supporters and protesters then clashed over Lang’s anti-Muslim rhetoric SEE ALSO: Tensions rise in Minneapolis as right-wing influencer faces counterprotest For related articles: Minneapolis Protest.
