A large brawl erupted in the Westfield mall in San Francisco Sunday evening, forcing it to close its doors and leaving one officer injured as he tried to stop the violence, police said.
San Francisco police received multiple calls about 6:45 p.m. reporting fights at Westfield San Francisco Centre, police said. Dozens of officers swarmed the shopping mall in the Union Square area of the city and were seen in witness videos taking multiple suspects into custody.
The brawl started between about two dozen people in the food court and grew from there, police said.
Some officers were seen struggling to maintain order during the melee and even being attacked by suspects.
"It did complicate matters and that's why we did have to stop the situation as soon as possible and that's why you see us moving to multiple levels in order to stop and detain these individuals that were involved in this incident," San Francisco Police Department Officer Robert Rueca said.
One officer suffered minor injuries after being pepper-sprayed, police said.
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Because of the level of violence and the number of innocent bystanders inside the mall, the center was closed early, police said.
There was no indication what caused the brawl or exactly how many people were involved. Police confirmed late Sunday that one arrest was made.
Officers were still at the scene late Sunday investigating the incident, police said.
The mall is expected to open on schedule Monday morning.
