Date: September 26, 2016
Agency: Morton County Sheriff's Department
Contact: Morton County PIO (701) 426-1587
Mandan, N.D. - At around 9:30 a.m. Sunday, September 25, 2016 law enforcement were notified of approximately 200 individuals at a Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) construction site west of Highway 6 near St. Anthony. About 30 private security guards hired by DAPL were on the scene at the time and left the site when protesters arrived. Three guards remained to inform protesters they were trespassing. During this confrontation, one security guard was assaulted by protesters. When law enforcement arrived, they witnessed protesters carrying the security guard for approximately 100 yards. The guard was treated by paramedics for minor injuries.
Law enforcement witnessed protesters standing and sitting on pipe which is waiting to be placed in the ground. They were also seen damaging equipment and planting trees in the pipeline right-of-way. Protesters dispersed on their own shortly after law enforcement arrived. No arrests were made on-site. The incident remains under investigation.
“Security officers reported seeing numerous protesters carrying knives; they also reported one protester with a pistol in his waistband,” said Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier.
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