British police arrived en force to a Birmingham entertainment complex Saturday afternoon after they received a report of people armed with machetes swarming into the cinema in the complex.
The Mirror reported that witnesses said the fighting was over the film Blue Story,” based on YouTube videos about gang culture in southeast London. But the cineplex was also filled with parents and young children waiting to see Disney’s “Frozen 2” as well.
West Midlands Police said pockets of fighting broke out as they attempted to clear the area and some officers were assaulted. “Several arrests have been made,” police said on Twitter.
Authorities closed the Star City complex in the city’s northeast as police brought batons, tasers, and security dogs, witnesses said.
“Armed police come, Tasers come, all of the people that were fighting ran off into the cinema, hiding. I am shaking,” Choleigh McGuire told the BBC.
McGuire told The Mirror that “it was a group of girls started on this one girl. Someone separated it at first. The other girls friend started punching her. Security came and broke it up then loads of police come.”
Rachael Allison, a journalism student at the University of Salford in Manchester, was on hand to see “Blue Story.”
Just came to see the new blue story film, standing in line for snacks when a fight breaks out behind my brother – worst thing is, it’s young girls fighting. Police brought batons, tasers and dogs out. Star city now closed pic.twitter.com/3NC4efYRyp
— Rachael Allison (@_rachaelallison) November 23, 2019
Although police said the call they received was about people with machetes, so far there have been no reports of stabbing, and police have not confirmed the report.
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[Featured image: Screenshot from Rachael Allison video]
