Melee in Ellsworth leads to two arrests Confrontation involved up to 20 people

ELLSWORTH – Police said Monday that a loud and bloody commotion in local parking lots drew up to 20 people during the weekend and led to the arrests of two men on assault charges.

The fight began Friday night after two women – one from the Blue Hill area, the other from Down East – got into an argument at the Wal-Mart store on Route 3, said Ellsworth police Sgt. Leigh Guildford.

When questioned later, none of the people involved could recall what the initial argument was about, he said.

But the women drew friends into their dispute, forming two large crowds.

When the Blue Hill and Machias factions met later in the evening at the Maine Coast Mall, then in the Shop ‘n Save parking lot, their dispute in words escalated to violence, Guildford said.

Ellsworth police received their first complaints of a loud disturbance and several injured people about 10 p.m.

Most of the crowd scattered when Guildford’s cruiser pulled in.

However, enough witnesses reported the aggressive behavior of two young men from Blue Hill.

Police arrested both men on charges of assault and criminal mischief.

Witnesses told police that Jason J. Riley, 18, had a wooden club, which they said he was using to strike people and vehicles.

One victim had her car window smashed simply because she happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. “She was just a passenger sitting in a vehicle,” Guildford said.

Police said Lloyd C. Turner, 19, threw another man through a window, according to witnesses. The victim, a man from Machias, had three fairly deep cuts on his back, but refused medical attention at the scene, Guildford said.

Both Turner and Riley spent Friday night at Hancock County Jail.

Police interviews have been turned over to the District Attorney’s Office, where prosecutors will determine whether any more people should face charges, Guildford said.

Police don’t believe that alcohol or drugs were a factor in the incident.