Today (Aug. 12), a 58-year-old white woman named Lorrene Lake was arrested in Long Beach, California after months of harassing her neighbors. Lake’s actions included shouting racial slurs, throwing glass, vandalizing property and threatening fellow residents with weapons like a spear and a firearm. The harassment was recorded with a cell phone and posted to social media which aided in her arrest.
A Black man who identifies himself as Yukatan Everett Mason on Instagram used social media to ask for help after allegedly contacting the Long Beach Police Department multiple times and not receiving assistance. Mason also posted videos of the many incidents, however, Instagram removed the posts for violating community guidelines. “@instagram Y’all removed my video ’cause there was a [swastika] that MY RACIST neighbor drew. That’s the whole point of the video! [Ain’t] no guideline about the part of her saying I should be hung and [calling] me n****er. RETURN MY VIDEO ASAP!” he wrote. The video can now be viewed on TikTok.
According to the Long Beach Post News, Lake was arrested in the 2300 block of East Second Street and taken into custody just past midnight. Authorities were called while she was in a dispute with another neighbor. The Long Beach Police Department revealed the woman had an inoperable firearm. She was charged with illegal possession of a firearm, felony criminal threats and a misdemeanor violation of a restraining order. Her bail has been set at $50,000.
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia condemned Lake’s behavior. “This is the Mayor. FYI this person was arrested last night. This is unacceptable hate and dangerous,” Garcia tweeted in response to the TikTok video of Lake that was posted to Twitter. In one video clip, the woman carries a rope and uses it as a noose. According to the Long Beach Police Department, the investigation regarding Lake’s case is ongoing.