Police arrested 20 people on the weekend that a group officially labeled an "outlaw motorcycle gang" was slated to gather in Cathedral City.
On Friday, Sept. 18, and Saturday, Sept. 19, Cathedral City police said they and other police agencies conducted two "high-visibility enforcement" actions that led to seized handguns, impounded vehicles and arrests for alleged narcotics and weapons violations, possession of stolen property, driving with a suspended license and outstanding warrants.
Police arrested 15 people on Friday and five people on Saturday. In press releases, police did not say how many, if any, were believed to be Mongols members.
The arrests coincided with a three-day visit by the Mongols Motorcycle Club at a DoubleTree resort in Cathedral
City. The Mongols have been classified as an outlaw motorcycle gang by the U.S. Department of Justice and have been meeting regularly in the Coachella Valley since at least 2013.
Police said in a news release six handguns were confiscated and 14 vehicles were either stored or impounded. Officers also issued 77 citations.
CCPD did not directly tie the high enforcement period to the Mongols visit and did not say if any of the arrestees had been club members. Still, police had said in advance, they would increase patrols to deal with the visit.
Police said the heightened enforcement lasted from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday.
A large police presence was visible on the roads around the DoubleTree hotel, with over a dozen officers visible Friday alone from CCPD as well as the Indio Police Department and the Riverside County Sheriff's Office. A motorcycle was seen being loaded onto a tow truck Friday afternoon on Landau Boulevard near the hotel; it was not clear whether there was any relation to the Mongols.
Officers from the California Highway Patrol, Palm Springs Police Department, Riverside County Probation Office and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation also participated, according to the police press releases.
The Cathedral City Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Desert Sun.
In the past, around 1,000 Mongols members have visited the Coachella Valley. It was not immediately clear how large the gathering had been in 2026.
"This is a documented outlaw motorcycle gang, and we are treating it that way," Police Chief Rick Sanchez said before the Mongols' visit.
Sam Morgen covers local government for The Desert Sun. Reach him at smorgen@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: 20 arrested on days Mongols Motorcycle Club visits Palm Springs area
