While the Athens Police Department accumulated fewer arrests at this year’s Mill Fest than in 2013, Athens Police Chief Tom Pyle said the event saw a big increase in attendance.
He added that though this did not cause major problems with law enforcement, it did lead to a few hectic moments, including one incident of felony assault on a state law enforcement official and three marijuana-related offenses.
“We had an agent that had identified what he believed was an underage individual and it turned out was,” said Eric Wolf, administrative agent with the Ohio Investigative Unit, the branch of the state Department of Public Safety which manages the undercover liquor agents who typically patrol during fests.
“He identified himself as a police officer to the individual,” Wolf continued. “The individual then pushed him to the ground and tried to flee. However, the agent was obviously not working alone, and the other agents were able to detain the suspect and place him under arrest.”
In addition, the unit made 16 arrests at Uptown bars over the weekend, Wolf said, adding the unit’s enforcement efforts were in line with years past and tactics for upcoming fests will be similar.
Wolf said the slight increase in OIU arrests “can’t necessarily” be attributed to a larger crowd.
Pyle said the crowd size was not a big deal “in the long run, but in the short run I saw it as problematic. But it all worked out OK.”
Mill Fest saw peak attendance between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m., Pyle said. The event began Saturday morning, with most of the house parties ending by 8:30 p.m.
APD arrested 12 people, mostly on alcohol-related offenses. There was one arrest relating to a marijuana offense.
That was a sharp decrease compared to last year, when APD arrested 29 people on 42 charges, according to a previous Post article.
However, OIU and OUPD more than made up for the decrease.
OIU undercover agents, who are infamous for their presence during fest season and other major partying events in Athens, arrested 36 people on 55 charges.
OUPD arrested or cited 27 people on 31 charges, 15 of which were public urination. The charges were typical of any major spring fest, Ohio University Police Chief Andrew Powers said.
There were 75 total arrests during Saturday’s fest between the three law enforcement agencies.
as299810@ohiou.edu
@akarl_smith
This article originally appeared in print under the headline, "Record attendance at Mill Fest; arrest rates remain high"
