Man who police say was recorded attacking pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA is arrested on suspicion of felony assault

By Cindy Von Quednow and Kyung Lah, CNN

(CNN) — An 18-year-old man who police say was recorded attacking a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles last month was arrested Thursday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, records show.

Edan On was arrested by the UCLA Police Department, booked on a felony and is being held on $30,000 bail, UCLA Police and jail records show.

CNN was first to identify On, along with other counterprotesters, through a review of hundreds of hours of video, social media posts and interviews.

“UCLA Police Department detectives conducted an investigation that included interviewing victims, speaking with witnesses, and reviewing security camera footage and publicly available videos from members of the public and the media,” the department said in a statement to CNN.

The UCLA Police Department confirmed On was on the UCLA campus on April 30 and “was seen on video assaulting encampment occupants with a wooden pole” has been arrested by UCLA Police in the City of Beverly Hills.

CNN is working to identify an attorney for On.

Video shows On joining counterprotesters at the UCLA campus on April 30 waving a long white pole. At one point, he strikes a pro-Palestinian protester with the pole, and appears to continue to strike him even when he was down, as fellow counterprotesters piled on.

“The UCLA Police Department is committed to investigating all reported acts of violence and is actively working to identify the other perpetrators of violence associated with any protest or counter-protest activities between April 25, 2024 and May 2, 2024,” the department said.

On’s mother, who told CNN he is a senior at Beverly Hills High School, initially bragged in a now-deleted social media post about her son’s participation in the violent event, circling an image of him and writing “he is all over the news channels.”

When CNN showed On’s mother a video of him attacking the protestor, she said he was only defending himself. She later said On denied being at UCLA that night.

Beverly Hills High School said, due to privacy concerns, it could not confirm or deny On is a student there and whether he can participate in his graduation ceremony.

“Attending graduation is a privilege, and we expect our students to uphold the highest standards of behavior to participate in this significant milestone,” Beverly Hills Unified School District Superintendent Michael Bregy told CNN.

The-CNN-Wire
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