19 people arrested after Gophers' Frozen Four loss
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For the second time in three nights, police cleared rowdy fans from the streets of Dinkytown late Saturday night after a University of Minnesota Gophers' NCAA hockey title game loss. Minneapolis police say they arrested 19 people.
Hundreds of fans took over the intersection at 4th Street and 14th Avenue, blocking traffic, dancing and jumping. More than a dozen people laid down on the pavement directly in front of a line of police, their batons held in front of them.
When they refused orders to disperse, police fired paint pellets. Several people were pinned to the ground and arrested. The crowd sprinted away as lines of police high on horseback advanced, clearing the streets and sidewalks, while a police helicopter circled overhead.
Sophomore Sam Hughes says he was hit by an officer during the chaotic scene.
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"He hit me in the back of the head, I was walking back, I didn't do anything, I didn't mess with him, he hit me in the back of my head with his gun," Hughes said.
By midnight the crowd had mostly left and traffic started to flow again.
Police say in a statement that two known incidents of arson were reported, along with an undetermined amount of property damage. They say no law enforcement members were injured but declined to release further details.
The Minnesota Daily reports police had vowed to thwart possible unrest following Saturday's game. The Daily says officers were armed with zip ties and nonlethal weapons that were fired into the crowd as a mounted patrol unit advanced and helicopters circled overhead.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
