BEACHWOOD,
Ohio (AP) — Fights broke out at malls around the country Monday night
sending shoppers, who were looking for post-holiday deals, scrambling
for the exits.
No one was seriously injured in the mall melees, which, during the panic, also prompted numerous false reports of gunfire.
Police
in Ohio told Cleveland.com that officers used pepper spray to disperse a
large crowd following a fight at an upscale shopping mall in Beachwood,
just outside of Cleveland.
A report of shots fired was later determined to be unfounded.
One
male juvenile was arrested for allegedly trying to hit an officer
during the incident, which police said appeared to have been "loosely
organized on social media."
There
were similar disturbances at malls around the country including in New
York, New Jersey and North Carolina, where chaos erupted at a mall in
Fayetteville and emergency medical personnel were called in to assist
someone who had a medical episode while fleeing.
In
Memphis, Tennessee, police arrested several people following fights at
two malls there. No one was injured and no gunshots were fired, despite
reports indicating otherwise.
"Somebody yelled 'gun!' and youths stampeded through the mall," Deputy Chief Terry Landrum told The Commercial Appeal.
Police in Aurora, Colorado, near Denver, evacuated a mall due to multiple skirmishes.
The trouble reportedly began during an arrest when an unruly crowd surrounded the scene.
Aurora
police spokesman Sgt. Chris Amsler said that as the suspect was being
taking into custody, the crowd, which mushroomed in size to about 500
people, advanced on the officer and fights broke out. Five juveniles
were arrested. No one was hurt.
In
Aurora, Illinois, outside of Chicago, a mall there was temporarily shut
down due to a large disturbance. Videos posted on Twitter showed mall
security trying to get the situation under control.
There
was no official word on whether any of the fights, which were also
reported in Arizona, Texas, Indiana and Connecticut, were connected.
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