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Suburbs Aurora Beacon-News
Fights among teens force closing of Fox Valley Mall
Fox Valley Mall
Aurora police squad cars are parked outside Fox Valley Mall, which was evacuated and closed Monday night after a major fight broke out at the Aurora shopping center. (Megann Horstead / For the Aurora Beacon-News)
Sarah FreishtatAurora Beacon-News
The Fox Valley Mall in Aurora was evacuated and closed for about an hour Monday night after “unusually large crowds” of teens congregated in the mall and some fights broke out, an Aurora police official said.
Police Lt. Rick Robertson said about 1,000 teens congregated in the mall, some running from section to section. Around 6:30 p.m., the first fights started to break out. When bottles of water and Gatorade began flying from the upper levels, officials decided to close the mall to prevent a large brawl, he said.
“It was a lot of kids and a couple of scuffles and just for everyone’s safety it was best to get everyone moving along before one large incident occurred,” he said.
Robertson said he was aware of four people in custody Monday night, at least two of them juveniles, but he did not know whether they had been charged or with what. One police sergeant was punched in the face, Robertson said, but he was not aware of any other injuries Monday night.
Naperville resident Margo Whelan said she was shopping at Macy’s when the evacuation started. Employees were moved out first, then announcements came over the public address system, she said.
"They locked all the doors and they followed us down the escalators,” Whelan said Monday night at a nearby restaurant. “There's a lot more plainclothes police officers in the mall than you think. They were in there doing all that and combing through. But at the same time, they had come over the PA quite a few times.”
The Fox Valley Mall closing comes amid reports of fights and evacuations at other malls nationwide.
In Fayetteville, N.C., Police Lt. Todd Joyce said police were called to Cross Creek Mall around 5 p.m. Monday because of a disturbance. He says some teenagers were apparently involved in a fight at the mall.
He said officers found no one injured from the altercation. Witnesses told media outlets there was chaos as hundreds tried to flee the mall. Joyce said no arrests had been made but police were reviewing security video to see whether charges are warranted. He said emergency medical personnel were called to assist someone who had a medical episode while fleeing.
In Manchester, Conn., police responded to a melee at a shopping mall and arrested several people. Authorities said fights broke out Monday evening at The Shoppes at Buckland Hills mall. There were no immediate reports of any serious injuries.
Manchester police Capt. Chris Davis posted on his Twitter account that several hundred teenagers were in the mall at the time and there were several fights. He said several people were arrested and the mall was evacuated. He also said authorities were still trying to sort out what happened. A mall security official said at about 7 p.m. Monday that the mall was closed. He would not confirm or deny that there was a large fight. The mall's regular closing time is 9 p.m.
Teen charged with carrying loaded air gun in Fox Valley Mall
Teen charged with carrying loaded air gun in Fox Valley Mall
Robertson said he could not speculate on a motive for the Fox Valley Mall congregating or fights and had no indication beforehand the fights might occur. An Aurora police officer on duty at the mall requested extra officers when he saw the large number of teens congregating, Robertson said.
He could said police could not confirm or rule out that the Fox Valley Mall fights were connected to the incidents nationwide Monday night.
“With social media nowadays, it wouldn’t surprise me,” he said. “But at this point in time, we have nothing to substantiate that.”
Ultimately, about 75 officers from several agencies responded, he said.
The Fox Valley Mall was emptied by about 7:30 p.m. and reopened around 8:30, Robertson said. After the mall was evacuated, many teens remained in the area waiting for rides and some went to nearby restaurants. Robertson said no incidents were reported, but police provided extra patrols until all kids were out of the area.
Freelance reporter Megann Horstead contributed.
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