Five killed in 'gang' fight at arcade

By Ma Wei and Li Aoxue (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-25 07:31

CHONGQING: Five people were killed and two were injured in a fight at an amusement arcade here on Sunday night, local police said Monday.

The incident began at about 10:30 pm with a dispute between a group of men and the manager of the Milky Way Express arcade, the Chongqing police department said in a statement sent to China Daily.

However, a police officer, surnamed Liu, who faxed the statement, refused to give any further details of the incident, saying an investigation is under way.

The Xinhua News Agency reported Monday that more than 20 men armed with knives and batons clashed with arcade employees.

A local man, who asked not to be named, told China Daily he saw police and medics carrying bodies out of the arcade at about 1 am Monday via an underground exit.

The victims, four men and a woman, were all arcade employees, he said.

The woman worked as a cashier and was the wife of the boss.

The incident began with a quarrel between two men and the arcade manager, Chen Lianjun, the witness said.

One of the men then made a telephone call and soon after, a group of his associates arrived and began attacking arcade staff, he said.

"Then about 80 police cars and ambulances arrived at the scene," he said.

Police from the municipal government arrived ahead of the district police, which suggests they suspected the incident was gang related, the witness said.

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Local government sources told China Daily earlier that Wang Lijun, executive deputy director of Chongqing police, is highly regarded for his efforts to stamp out mafia-style gangs.

As police chief in Jinzhou, Liaoning, he instigated crackdowns on four mafia-like gangs and arrested more than 200 suspected gangsters, China Central Television reported earlier.

Chongqing police also said in the statement they have launched an investigation into all Internet cafes and arcades in the municipality to check for illegal operation and possible links to criminal gangs.

A woman cashier at the Haigeer Internet cafe in the city said that police conducted an inspection there at 9 am Monday.

When they found the caf had failed to record information about two Internet users, the police ordered it to suspend its operations.

In several provinces in the country, users of Internet cafes are required to show their identity cards before being allowed to go online to keep minors away.

"We have had inspections in the past, but this time the police were really strict," the cashier said.