May 22, 2023 A Tinley Park police officer was injured trying to break up a fight that erupted after around 400 teenagers overran the village’s Armed Forces Weekend Carnival in response to a call on social media.
By Shanzeh Ahmad Source Chicago Tribune Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The last day of the Tinley Park carnival was canceled Sunday after some 400 teenagers gathered at the site Saturday night for a flash mob, the village of Tinley Park said in a statement.
The Armed Forces Weekend Carnival was set to continue with a final day of festivities 1-8 p.m. Sunday at the 80th Avenue train station, but organizers said the police decided to cancel it after learning that another flash mob was being planned on social media for Sunday.
About 400 teenagers swarmed the carnival Saturday night in response to a call on social media to get a flash mob going, the village’s statement said. Teenagers began running through the parking lot and fighting with each other “in an attempt to cause chaos and disrupt the event,” the village said.
A police officer was injured while attempting to break up a fight and was treated at a hospital and later released Saturday, the village said. Most of the teenagers were released from police custody, but five were issued citations for fighting in public, according to the statement.
No shots were fired during the incident.
Tinley Park police said no further information was available Sunday afternoon.