Editors Note: This article was originally published in the Aug. 2, 2023 issue of the Chronicle Progress. Some information may be outdated.
200 people gathered to celebrate Peru holiday when fight breaks out
A Peruvian Independence Day party near Delta devolved into alcohol-fueled bedlam early Sunday morning after a physical altercation broke out between multiple people.
The party took place in the 1600 block of East 1000 South just outside Delta, where the old drive-in theater was once located. According to multiple sources, about 200 people showed up Saturday night to celebrate Peru’s July 28, 1821 independence from Spain.
A source told the Chronicle Progress the party’s host rented space behind a home for the gathering, which got out of hand after a man became jealous when the woman he was with started talking to other men.
The source, who wished to remain anonymous, said the man allegedly struck the woman, then other parties attempted to break up the squabble and a fight ensued between all of them. The source said at least five people were hurt in the melee.
When police responded to the chaotic scene sometime around 3 a.m., partygoers began to flee the area.
Sheriff Richard Jacobson said Monday investigators were still trying to piece events together. He said a language barrier and lack of cooperation were hindering his office’s efforts.
“We’re still looking into the dynamics of that whole thing. Lot of language barriers for our folks, trying to deal with it,” he said. “We were told that there were assaults that had occurred. But as we attempted to investigate that, there wasn’t any remarkable cooperation that identified suspects or even victims. We didn’t get much cooperation.”
County Attorney Patrick Finlinson said his office is weighing charges against at least one person.
“It sounds like we may have enough information to pursue some charges against one individual. But that’s it. It’s exactly that, nobody is willing to say anything,” he said.
The prosecutor said he thought a warrant would probably be issued for a suspect who committed the initial assault.
“I do think we have a name. We’ve got, someone was identified that caused the injuries. I think we’re going to be filing assault charges,” he said.
Finlinson said he didn’t believe all of the partygoers were local residents—a large contingent of the county’s immigrant labor force are from a single region of Peru, many working at Delta Egg Farms and local dairies.
“I think part of the general fear here is that there is a possibility there is a lot of un-documentation,” Jacobson said, adding that culturally it was hard to know what interactions between law enforcement in Peru and citizens there are like. “So, don’t talk to law enforcement because you’ll be deported.”
Finlinson said Sunday morning’s mayhem was illustrative of the danger the area faces from a shortage of law enforcement officers. Only about three patrol units were on duty in the whole county when police were called.
“It was one of those instances where you realize we are so outgunned. We’re so understaffed. You think something like that could go completely crazy,” he said. “They called everybody they could out.”
The culture gap and language barrier only exacerbated the matter.
“The fact is we’ve got this growing, rapidly growing population of people from a place that is surprisingly unfamiliar with our, you know, customs,” Finlinson said.
