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Brawl breaks out at Cheektowaga mall, 6 arrested

Posted at 12:00 AM, Dec 28, 2014
and last updated 2015-12-22 23:52:22-05

A day of shopping at the mall turned into fisticuffs for close to a dozen people inside the Walden Galleria, Friday evening.

Cheektowaga police say the brawl broke out just after 5:00 p.m. right outside of the food court area.

"We're not sure why they were fighting," said Assistant Chief James Speyer, Cheektowaga Police Department. "It seems like a common occurrence around Christmas, the day after etc. A lot of kids go to the mall, they have no school, they run into each other, they don't like eachother....etc."

Police say more than 10 people were involved in the fight. They threw things at one another, and caused a big scene for boxing day shoppers.

A bystander took video with his cell phone, and at one point during the video you can see a man on the ground being kicked and punched and clothing items falling over the banister onto the floor below.

"No one was injured," said Speyer. "It could have been a lot worse. Someone fall off the banister, an innocent bystander get hurt. We were lucky nothing was serious."

While police made several arrests, only one person is above the age of 18. Police say 24-year-old Terrelle Johnson was somehow involved in the fight. He's charged with obstructing government administration and resisting arrest.

"Many people were kicked out, but the ones arrested refused to leave," said Speyer.

Some mall employees tell 7 Eyewitness News they believe there needs to be more security at the Galleria, especially around the holidays.

Cheektowaga Police say they do beef up security, and have officers many times working at the mall on overtime around the Holidays.

"Kids will be kids," said Speyer. "But they need to obey the rules and be more responsible."

In all six people were arrested including one person who assaulted an officer after the fight. Police say that man refused to follow the officer's orders and pushed the officer.

No one was seriously injured and most of the people involved in the fight were males between the ages of 17 to 19 years old.