Coachella Weekend Two Reportedly Saw a 40% Arrest Spike Over Last Year

Drug possession, false identification, and public intoxication were the most cited offenses among Coachella 2024 weekend two attendees.

Coachella faced sluggish ticket sales in 2024 and failed to sell out the second weekend, leading to a noticeably thin crowd at some stages. That apparently didn’t reflect in arrest records connected with the second half of this year’s event, as they spiked 40% over last year.

According to KESQ, Indio Valley Police Department Spokesperson Ben Guitron said that authorities made 112 arrests at the festival from Friday, April 19 through Sunday, April 21. That’s 31 more than weekend one of the 2024 edition, and 32 more than weekend two of the 2023 edition.

What were the violations? Guitron said that the most common offense at 41 arrests was possession of drug sales with the intent to distribute. A further 26 people were detained for presenting false identification, and 24 for public intoxication. Six people were arrested on suspicion of property crimes, and charges were not specified for the other 15 arrests. No detainments in connection to violent crimes were reported.

High arrest rates weren’t the only thing that cast a negative light on this year’s edition of Coachella. While dance music lovers were delighted by billings like Justice, Gesaffelstein, and Dom Dolla, headline acts like Doja Cat, Tyler, The Creator, and Lana Del Rey did little to stir fans of more mainstream music. Whether owing to this or changes in spending habits among festival goers, tickets sold more slowly than they have in a decade and a half.

During weekend one of the festival, Grimes also went viral for technical difficulties on the Sahara stage that caused a heated online debate over her DJ abilities. Then, weekend two saw Kid Cudi break his foot while jumping down from the same stage during his performance.

The advance sale for Coachella 2025 will be underway on May 3, meaning that the many attendees who enjoyed themselves in spite of the setbacks can lock in their passes for next year.

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