US: 1 stabbed, 1 arrested as hundreds of teenagers brawl
A chaotic brawl erupted at Emeryville's Bay Street Shopping Complex in California, United States (US), on Sunday, involving 300-400 teenagers. A teenager was stabbed, and another was arrested, the police said. It began with a group of youngsters causing a commotion inside a store, which quickly escalated. The police tried to escort the unruly teens out of the store, but the situation spiraled out of control as multiple altercations broke out among the growing crowd at the mall.
Video shows moment of melee
Chaos ensued for hours
The initial disruption started with a group of young adults creating a disturbance inside a store in the mall. As the hours passed, the situation became increasingly chaotic, with numerous fights breaking out amid the influx of teenagers. Following the initial skirmish, approximately 100 young adults arrived at the scene, soon followed by an estimated 100 to 150 additional teenagers, the dispatched police officers said. There were reports of theft and vandalism in stores.
Shot fired, but nobody injured
In response to the escalating situation, the Emeryville Police requested troops from neighboring areas during their four-hour ordeal marked by clashes involving 300-400 teenagers. The first of several fights were reported near the mall's courtyard. Around 10 minutes later, a single gunshot was reportedly fired. However, the police were unable to locate any suspects or victims related to the incident. The person who stabbed was stated to be out of danger.
Teen fight club?
A similar incident was reported in the same shopping complex nearly three years ago. Two large groups of teenagers gathered to fight without any guns or knives. The fight was allegedly planned in advance with the intention of live-streaming it online. The crowd gathered and brawled there for two consecutive weekends, forcing the shops in the area to shut down. No major injury was reported besides some instances of vandalism.
