Three Occupy Oakland protesters accused of surrounding and taunting a woman before stealing her wallet were charged on Friday with robbery and hate crimes, authorities said.

Michael Davis, 32, Nneka Crawford, 23, and Randolph Wilkins, 24, confronted the woman on the streets of Oakland in February after she told them not to riot, the Oakland Police said in a written release.

According to a report by NBC Bay Area, police said the woman was crossing the street from a Wells Fargo bank when she noticed a group of Occupy protesters calling for a riot. She allegedly told them not to riot in her neighborhood and was then surrounded.

"She was surrounded by three protesters and battered as they yelled vulgar epithets regarding their perception of her sexual orientation," Oakland Police spokeswoman Johnna Watson said.

The female victim was not identified except as a 20-year resident of the neighborhood.

Occupy Oakland: 400 arrested after violent protest

"Her wallet was taken during the crime," Watson said. "The victim broke away from the group and called police, who were able to arrest one suspect near the scene."

Watson said the other two suspects were arrested at a February 29 Occupy Oakland protest.

Each was charged by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office with felony counts of robbery and hate crimes, Watson said.

An Occupy Oakland organizer could not be reached for comment on Friday evening.

PhotoBlog: Occupy protesters target downtown Oakland bank branches

A rallying cry of the movement has been that 1 percent of the population has too much of the nation's wealth and the remaining 99 percent is disadvantaged.

It has lost momentum in recent months after police cleared encampments in New York, Oakland and other major cities.

NBC Bay Area said police were asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the Major Crimes Section at the Oakland Police Department.

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

• Woman called 'slut' by Limbaugh is 'stunned, outraged'
• Students fight valedictorian's deportation order
• Lawsuit: College roommate had too much sex
• Is someone with a criminal past running your kid's day care?
• Ex-director at military mortuary that mishandled 9/11 remains resigns

NBC Bay Area, msnbc.com staff and Reuters contributed to this report.

Beck Diefenbach / AP

Occupy Oakland protestors burn an American flag found inside Oakland City Hall on Saturday.

Story updated 12:30 p.m. ET:

Oakland officials on Sunday were inspecting damage inside City Hall that was caused by about 50 Occupy protesters who broke in and smashed glass display cases, spray-painted graffiti, and burned the U.S. and California flags.

The break-in on Saturday was the culmination of a day of clashes between protesters and police. At least 300 people were arrested on charges ranging from vandalism and failure to disperse.

At least three officers and one protester were injured.

Mayor Jean Quan said Occupy protesters have caused an estimated $2 million in damages from vandalism since October. She said the cost to the city related to the Occupy Oakland protests is pegged at about $5 million.

The scene around City Hall was mostly quiet Sunday morning. It was unclear whether protesters would mount another large-scale demonstration later in the day.

Story updated 6:00 a.m. ET:

A U.S. flag was burned by a group of protestors inside City Hall, according to City Council President Larry Reid. City officials also said three police officers and one protester were injured during Saturday's events.

Story updated 3:15 a.m. ET:

Sgt. Christopher Bolton of the Oakland Police Department told msnbc.com that the number arrested was likely between 200 and 300. "We are still processing the arrests," he said. He was speaking after the release of a statement on the Oakland City website that put the number of arrests at 200. "That figure is probably on the low side and we don't have a confirmed total yet," said. Sgt Bolton. In the statement, released in a PDF file format, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said: "Once again, a violent splinter group of the Occupy Movement is engaging in violent actions against Oakland. The Bay Area Occupy Movement has got to stop using Oakland as their playground." The statement also said there were reports of damage to exhibits inside City Hall during the protest.

Story published 1:30 a.m.:

Police arrested about 300 people Saturday as Occupy Oakland protesters were thwarted trying to take over a vacant convention center and enter a YMCA. Protesters later broke into City Hall, where they burned a flag taken from inside.

Police used tear gas and "flash" grenades in the afternoon against 2,000 protesters who tried to tear down fences around the vacant Henry Kaiser Convention Center, where they hoped to establish a new camp. Police said some demonstrators started throwing objects at officers. There were at least 19 arrests in the afternoon.

After 6 p.m. (9 p.m. ET), police in riot gear declared a group of protesters gathered near the YMCA under mass arrest for failing to disperse, according to local media reports and livestreams. Police said about 100 demonstrators were arrested at the YMCA.

Several protesters at  the YMCA appeared to be put hard to the ground as police moved in and at least one protester had blood on his face.

Protesters chanted, "Let us disperse," but instead were taken one by one for police processing.

Some protesters claimed they were trying to flee police by running through the YMCA rather than take over the building.

Later in the evening, about 100 police officers surrounded City Hall while others swept the inside of the building.

Police arrived after protesters had broken into City Hall, stole an American flag from the council chamber and set it ablaze, the Oakland Tribune reported. Officers stomped out the fire.

Earlier, protesters met at Frank Ogawa Plaza around noon and marched toward the convention center in hopes of making it their new meeting place and social center, NBCBayArea.com reported.

Read NBCBayArea.com coverage of the protest

Oakland officials said about 250 people were in the group when the protest started but the crowd grew to about 2,000.

Earlier during the rally one of the organizers, Shake Anderson, said, "We are here to protect each other and to be civil disobedient. ... We're doing it to change the world, not just today but every day."

Stephen Lam / Reuters

Police officers arrest an Occupy Oakland demonstrator during a clash Saturday in Oakland, Calif., where officers fired tear gas at hundreds of protesters who tried to take over a shuttered convention center.

The protesters were walking through Laney College around 2:30 p.m. Some people were wearing bandanas over their mouths and others were holding signs saying, "We are the 99%." A marching band dressed in pink and black tutus and neon pick tights also was in the crowd.

Officer Jeff Thomason said police started making arrests when some in the crowd started throwing objects at them during the afternoon rally. Three officers were injured, police said, but did not elaborate.

@OaklandPoliceCA tweeted around 3 p.m., "Area of Oakland Museum and Kaiser Center severely impacted. Persons cutting and tearing fences for entry. Bottles and objects thrown at OPD."

Once they reached the center, organizers planned to kick off a two-day "Oakland Rise-up Festival" to celebrate the establishment of the movement's new space.

Occupy Oakland spokesman Leo Ritz-Bar said the action would signal "a new direction for the Occupy movement: putting vacant buildings at the service of the community."

Stephen Lam / Reuters

Occupy Oakland demonstrators shield themselves from an explosion Saturday during a confrontation with the police near the Oakland Museum of California in Oakland, Calif.

He also warned that protesters could retaliate against any repressive police action by blocking the Oakland International Airport, occupying City Hall or shutting down the Port of Oakland.

City officials said that while they are "committed to facilitating peaceful forms of expression and free speech, police would be prepared to arrest those who break the law.

"The city of Oakland will not be bullied by threats of violence or illegal activity," city administrator Deanna Santana said in a statement issued Friday.

This article includes reporting from NBCBayArea.com, The Associated Press and msnbc.com's Miranda Leitsinger and Alastair Jamieson.

Related stories:

• Prosecutors aim new weapon at Occupy activists: lynching allegation
• Authorities to end camping at Occupy DC sites 
• More see class conflict between rich and poor
• Protester marries beloved (building) in shotgun wedding

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

• St. Louis hosts first big parade for Iraq War veterans
• 74 cats in a camper: Owner may face charges
• Police officer killed by fellow officer trying to arrest him
• Blood found in home where toddler disappeared

 

SAN FRANCISCO - The president of the University of California system said he was "appalled" at images of protesters being doused with pepper spray and plans an assessment of law enforcement procedures on all 10 campuses, as two police officers were placed on administrative leave in the incident.

"Free speech is part of the DNA of this university, and non-violent protest has long been central to our history," UC President Mark G. Yudof said in a statement Sunday in response to the spraying of students sitting passively at UC Davis. "It is a value we must protect with vigilance."

Yudof said it was not his intention to "micromanage our campus police forces," but he said all 10 chancellors would convene soon for a discussion "about how to ensure proportional law enforcement response to non-violent protest."

Protesters from Occupy Sacramento planned to travel to nearby Davis on Monday for a noon rally in solidarity with the students, the group said in a statement.

UC Davis officials refused to identify the two officers who were place on administrative leave but one was a veteran of many years on the force and the other "fairly new" to the department, the school's Police Chief Annette Spicuzza told The Associated Press. She would not elaborate further because of the pending probe.

Videos posted online of the incident clearly show one riot-gear clad officer dousing the line of protesters with spray as they sit with their arms intertwined. Spicuzza told the AP that the second officer was identified during an intense review of several videos.

"We really wanted to be diligent in our research, and during our viewing of multiple videos we discovered the second officer," Spicuzza said. "This is the right thing to do."

Both officers were trained in the use of pepper spray as department policy dictates, and both had been sprayed with it themselves during training, the chief noted.

Meanwhile, UC Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi said she has been inundated with reaction from alumni, students and faculty and would speed up an investigation that was to have taken three months.

"I spoke with students this weekend and I feel their outrage," Katehi said in a statement Sunday.

Katehi also set a 30-day deadline for her school's task force investigating the incident to issue its report. The task force, comprised of students, staff and faculty, will be chosen this week. She earlier had set a 90-day timetable.

She also plans to meet with demonstrators Monday at their general assembly, said her spokeswoman, Claudia Morain.

The UC Davis faculty association called for Katehi's resignation, saying in a Saturday letter there had been a "gross failure of leadership." Katehi has resisted calls for her to quit.

"I am deeply saddened that this happened on our campus, and as chancellor, I take full responsibility for the incident," Katehi said Sunday. "However, I pledge to take the actions needed to ensure that this does not happen again. I feel very sorry for the harm our students were subjected to and I vow to work tirelessly to make the campus a more welcoming and safe place."

The incident reverberated well beyond the university, with condemnations and defenses of police from elected officials and from the wider public on Facebook and Twitter.

"On its face, this is an outrageous action for police to methodically pepper spray passive demonstrators who were exercising their right to peacefully protest at UC Davis," Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said in a statement Sunday. "Chancellor Katehi needs to immediately investigate, publically explain how this could happen and ensure that those responsible are held accountable."

The protest Friday was held in support of the overall Occupy Wall Street movement and in solidarity with protesters at the University of California, Berkeley who were jabbed by police with batons on Nov. 9.

Nine students hit by pepper spray were treated at the scene, two were taken to hospitals and later released, university officials said. Ten people were arrested.

Meanwhile Sunday, police in San Francisco, about 80 miles south of Davis, arrested six anti-Wall Street protesters and cleared about 12 tents erected in front of the Federal Reserve Bank.

Across the bay in Oakland, police made no arrests after protesters peacefully left a new encampment set up in defiance of city orders.