LEWISTON — State and local police are investigating a melee late Tuesday night in the area of Kennedy Park involving at least two dozen teenagers, preteens and three adult males that left one man in critical condition, authorities said.
The man remained in critical condition Wednesday following surgery, police said. Several of the victim’s friends told the Sun Journal on Wednesday afternoon that the man, said to be in his 30s, had died. However, a Maine State Police spokesman said police are not aware of any death.
Nicholas Vinciguerra, who lives on Maple Street, said he and his longtime friends, whom he refers to as family, had been gathered in the park Tuesday night, many seeking “payback” for a previous confrontation, when gunfire from BB and pellet guns erupted from the open windows of a black car driving north on Bates Street.
Daniel Dennison, left, and Jennifer Hixon were involved in a Kennedy Park fight Tuesday night.
According to police, the people involved in the May 17 incident refused to file complaints that would have led to an investigation and that a video posted on social media is only a portion of what happened and does not portray what started the fight or whether anyone was injured.
Those hanging out in the park Wednesday complained that police don’t investigate these types of attacks as vigorously as they should. “It’s like the police are scared,” said a woman named Lori, sitting on a bench Wednesday in the middle of Kennedy Park. “But they need to put a stop to it or there are going to be riots.”
Lewiston Mayor Shane Bouchard said he wouldn’t comment on the matter while it was being investigated.
Police Lt. David St. Pierre said there has been increased tension at the park since the May 17 incident and that police are “definitely stepping up some patrols in the Kennedy Park area to hopefully address it and put an end to it, because it is concerning.”
“I wouldn’t say there’s some drastic uptick in calls there, but we are concerned because we’ve had a couple of incidents,” including the one Tuesday night, he said.
Police said Wednesday they would be enforcing a 9 p.m. curfew in the park. That means people will be allowed to move through the park but not congregate there.
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