Coachella 2023: Police arrest 102 people during Weekend 1, most for drugs or alcohol

Police made 102 arrests during the first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival — the majority of which were related to drugs, alcohol or intoxication.

Arrests were down by 9% compared to Weekend 1 of last year's festival, but the number of arrests made for drugs/alcohol/intoxication remained the same at 85. There were also three arrests for false identification and eight arrests for possession of drugs for sales this year, according to the Indio Police Department.

Indio police spokesperson Benjamin Guitron said the festival went well from the department's perspective, even though an officer was seriously injured in a traffic collision on Saturday. The officer was taken to the hospital and is currently in stable condition, he said. California Highway Patrol is investigating the accident.

Police also made two arrests for property crimes and four labeled as "other," which Guitron said usually includes things like trespassing, disturbing the peace and domestic issues.

There were 83 traffic-related citations, which was a 15% increase from last year's 72. Almost all of this year's, 79, were for unlawfully using a disabled parking placard. The remaining four were for parking in a handicap parking spot.

Guitron said there were traffic challenges with Uber and Lyft and people not using the designated routes for pick-up and drop-off. He urged festivalgoers and rideshare drivers to follow these directions for public safety.

"We can ensure that everyone will arrive to the concert … we have done our best for the pedestrians and the traffic flow but we need them to pay attention because (we're) just trying to avoid someone getting hurt," he said.

Ani Gasparyan covers the western Coachella Valley cities of Desert Hot Springs and Cathedral City. Reach her at ani.gasparyan@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coachella 2023: Over 100 Weekend 1 arrests, most for drugs or alcohol