Teen-Agers Battle in Fountain Valley : Brawl at Skating Rink Injures Six

A brawl involving several hundred teen-agers broke out at a Fountain Valley skating rink Friday night, injuring at least half a dozen people, including a 17-year-old who was hospitalized with a knife wound, police said.

The fight, which police said involved “several hundred Vietnamese” youths from both Orange and Los Angeles counties, erupted at the Fountain Valley Skating Center around 10:23 p.m. when a security guard tried to evict several youths after a fight.

One of the juveniles hit the security officer in the face, police said. When the officer tried to arrest the boy, he was attacked by a crowd of other young men.

Within minutes, police said, fights were raging throughout the facility, located on Recreation Circle in Fountain Valley, and in the parking lot outside.

Sgt. Darryl Nance said police officers from Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach responded to the disturbance, which he said may have been caused by feuding gangs.

“We don’t know, but we’ve been noticing an increase in (gang) activity, and last night it seems to have come to a head,” Nance said Saturday. “We have increased our patrols in the area to head off any more trouble.

“Anytime you get that many kids involved, there’s a good possibility there are gangs involved,” Nance said, adding that some of those who took part in the melee were from Los Angeles, Garden Grove and Westminster in addition to Fountain Valley.

“It appears they are coming down here to start fights,” he said.

An employee at the skating rink declined to discuss the incident on Saturday.

Nance said the 17-year-old was hospitalized at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital with a knife wound to his side. He was stabbed when he came to the aid of two 17-year-old girls who were being beaten and kicked, Nance said.

“The girls were beaten about their heads and shoulders with fists and shoes, and a security guard received head injuries when he was struck with his own flashlight,” Nance said.

Among those arrested were Huan Minh Ly, 18, of Garden Grove, on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.

Five other youths were arrested for assault and battery and failure to disperse and were booked in Juvenile Hall.