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Dozens Arrested After Occupy SF Protesters Invade Vacant Building

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) - San Francisco police said dozens of Occupy San Francisco San Francisco protesters were arrested at a church-owned building Monday.

After about 24 hours inside the building, where activists said they had plans to create a community center there to serve the homeless, police moved in at the two-story building at 888 Turk St.

Police spokesman Sgt. Michael Andraychak said around 3:45 p.m. that officers entered the building earlier Monday afternoon and were arresting protesters.

KCBS' Tim Ryan Reports:

KCBS' Tim Ryan reported that the total number is between 70 and 80 activists. SFPD claimed that some vandalism was done during the occupation.

Protesters settled into the building, owned by the Archdiocese of San Francisco, following a late-afternoon rally and march downtown on Sunday. Occupy SF representatives said the structure once housed a mental health clinic.

Occupy SF protesters said in a statement that they want the two-story building to serve as a haven for the city's homeless, who they say have "become subject to arrest and harassment simply for now existing in these very same streets they were forced into."

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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