Four people were arrested after fighting broke out at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills in Manchester Wednesday, the day after Christmas.
Manchester police said they received reports of “multiple disturbances and youths fighting inside.”
According to Lt. Ryan Shea, when officers arrived they found multiple groups fighting and requested mutual aid from neighboring towns due to the number of people involved.
Shea said the original disturbance appears to have started in front of the Forever 21, but that the groups moved around and it was hard to track them down.
Police estimate as many as 300 people may have been involved and officers had to close the inside of the mall to get the situation under control. When the mall crowd cleared out some groups left and started fighting at the nearby Walmart, Shea said.
Three adults and one juvenile were arrested, police said.
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Police said they detained Dynastee McCoy, 19, of Wethersfield, for allegedly being involved in the fight. After detaining McCoy, officers said two other women, 18-year-old Inaeja Williams and 18-year-old Naejza Bates, interfered with police.
All three women were charged with second-degree inciting a riot, second-degree breach of peace, and interfering with officers.
A 17-year-old male was also arrested after police said he would not leave the area where the fight took place. Officers also found a .22-caliber gun tucked into his waistband. The teen was charged with carrying a pistol without a permit, second-degree inciting a riot, second-degree breach of peace, interfering with officers, and first-degree criminal trespass.
A spokesperson for the mall said there were no injuries.
"There was an incident this evening at our shopping center, and we are grateful there were no injuries. We thank our security team and our partners at the Manchester Police Department for their swift response to contain the situation. The safety of our guests, retailers, and community is our highest priority," wrote Lindsay Kahn, The Shoppes at Buckland Hills spokesperson.
Crews from East Hartford, Vernon and Glastonbury all assisted.
The mall was expected to reopen at its normal time Thursday.
This is not the first time the mall has experienced this kind of disturbance. On Dec. 26, 2016, seven people were arrested after fights forced the mall to close.
The Connecticut Post Mall in Milford was also closed due to fighting Wednesday, Milford police confirmed. Milford police said it does not appear the incidents are connected.
