On Sunday night, Suffolk County police closed an unauthorized "fight club" at a Shirley, Long Island residence after reports of violence and gunfire. According to ABC7NY, upon arrival, officers found ongoing brawls and a situation where a gun was fired amid the disorder.
Thirteen individuals were placed under arrest while others fled the scene, Suffolk Police Chief of Detectives William Doherty described the gathering as an "unlawful assembly", indicating the fight club was a locale where individuals met to resolve disputes or simply to brawl. "Some people may think it's a good motivation to have people settle their disputes by meeting up and agreeing to fight it out but anytime you get a large gathering of people, things can go wrong," Doherty told ABC7NY. Among those arrested were mostly teenagers and young adults in their early twenties.
In a related coverage by The New York Post, the incident at the Brookhaven Aquatic Center also involved the discharge of blank shots from a gun, which resulted in injuries to two males, ages 17 and 19. Both victims were transported to a local hospital for treatment. The bulk of the fighters, as well as the spectators arrested, were between 16 and 20 years old.
One suspect, Devine Brown, 25, of Mastic Beach, faces multiple charges including assault, unlawful assembly, criminal use of a weapon, and menacing, Suffolk County Police report. Brown’s arraignment was scheduled for yesterday. This is the second fight club shutdown in Suffolk County in recent weeks. A similar illegal event last month drew about 70 attendees to a fight in Melville’s Walt Whitman Park.
The recent increase in such incidents is reminiscent of the underground fighting portrayed in Chuck Palahniuk’s 1996 novel Fight Club and its 1999 film adaptation, which depicted organized brawling. Devine Brown and the other individuals arrested now face legal proceedings, as The New York Post reported.
