A Garden Grove man was arrested this week after police said he made threats regarding a scheduled event in Long Beach celebrating the LGBTQ+ community.
Richard Alexis Castillo, 26, of Garden Grove, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of criminal threats, the Long Beach Police Department said. According to law enforcement, the suspect made criminal threats online against the Big Gay Floatilla event.
The event, scheduled for Saturday, aims to act as a meet-up where members of the queer community can swim, lounge and enjoy coastal festivities together. Organizers said they’ve held this event before but this was the first time they received concerning threats on social media.
“There’s a difference between feel safe and belonging, so this space is our best as taken over as a community and being completely comfortable being who we are, right,” said Salvador Flores, one of the event’s organizers
The threat that resulted in the arrest mentioned going to the event and taking projectiles that could “take a head off clean,” leaving some people feeling unnerved.
“It’s definitely very sad, especially in a place like Long Beach,” said Sierra Smith, who lives in the community.
Flores promptly reported the threat to police, who’ve been responsive.
“He said they were going to take this very seriously, and they were going to look into it,” the organizer said.
As a result of the criminal threats, Long Beach police said it was ramping up security patrol at the event. Meanwhile, Castillo’s bail was set at $50,000.