San Jose: Authorities announce more arrests in sideshow infamous for attack on police car

SAN JOSE — Authorities say several more people have been arrested in connection with a sideshow last month made infamous by a viral video showing several people striking and stomping on the vehicle of a police officer trying to reach an injured spectator near Santana Row.

In a statement scheduling a police news conference late Monday morning, the office of San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan announced that an investigation by San Jose police and the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office has led to the arrest of seven people in connection with the June 15 fracas at Winchester Boulevard and Olin Avenue.

It was not immediately clear whether those seven arrests included three that have already been announced to this point. That includes two brothers from Arizona who have been charged with participating in the attack and vandalism of the police officer and vehicle, and a man who was arrested on suspicion of being the driver who hit and injured the spectator that authorities say the officer was trying to help.

According to police and an eyewitness video disseminated on social media, just before 7 p.m. on June 15, a reserve police officer was the first to respond to a report of a spectator being hit and injured by a Nissan sedan driver performing doughnuts in a sideshow near the intersection.

As the officer drove within about 30 yards of the site, he was quickly surrounded by a crowd, some of whom were wearing ski masks over their faces. Several people started punching and kicking the officer’s patrol SUV as the officer drove in reverse away from the crowd. In the video, a masked person could be seen jumping onto the vehicle’s hood and stomping and kicking in the windshield.

Tyler Durbin, 22, was arrested four days later in San Juan Bautista and charged with assaulting a peace officer and felony vandalism; a police report states that he told investigators that he punched the police vehicle twice and voiced remorse. His brother, Gabe Durbin, 26, was similarly charged and accused of trying to open the officer’s driver-side door during the encounter; he has denied being at the sideshow, according to a police report.

Both men were released from jail Friday after a judge approved their transfer to a sober-living treatment facility in the area, rejecting their pleas to be allowed to return to Arizona. The brothers have moved back and forth between Arizona, Salinas and San Jose over the past decade, authorities said; they were reportedly in the area to vacate a Salinas storage unit rented by their mother.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.