National police officers have apprehended three individuals believed to be involved in a violent melee that erupted near Quijano Square in the old town of Alicante. The incident is described by authorities as a brutal street clash with at least two men acting against another person during a confrontation that escalated into a melee in that historic area.
The incident was initially reported through room 091 CIMACC, highlighting a crowd fight unfolding in the old town of Alicante. Upon arrival, police requested an ambulance to tend to the wounded who sustained multiple serious cuts, including injuries to two bystanders who were present at the scene.
According to preliminary information provided by officers at the scene, the altercation began between two individuals and a third person. A knife appeared to be drawn by one of the combatants, prompting others to react in fear and defend themselves. Several blows and cuts were delivered before medical personnel transported the injured to the State Hospital for treatment and stitches as needed.
Initial identification of the attacker proved difficult, prompting the Violent Crimes Group of the Provincial Judicial Police Brigade, attached to the Alicante Provincial Police Station, to take charge of the case. Through follow-up inquiries and investigative measures, investigators succeeded in identifying the suspect responsible for the stabbing and in reassessing the sequence of events as the inquiry progressed. The early statements from the injured parties did not fully align with what later emerged from the investigation.
Witness interviews and collected testimonies indicated that the conflict was not one-sided. Evidence suggested a violent exchange between two parties in which each side attacked the other, with one participant allegedly brandishing a knife and the other using chairs to strike from the terraces of nearby buildings. Both sides were found to be injured by stab wounds, and conflicting narratives emerged about how the events unfolded. One eyewitness, who was accompanied by another friend also present as a witness, both agreed in their statements that the aggression was mutual and that the described sequence involved two opposing groups rather than a single unprovoked attack.
According to accounts, a group surrounded and beat a Latino individual, who allegedly pulled a knife in response to being overwhelmed. The assailant reportedly used the weapon after being provoked and challenged by those around him, including confrontations that involved chairs from nearby terraces. Within this chaotic scene, the Latino person is said to have attempted to defend himself and retreat, but was repeatedly struck. He then managed to escape briefly before being restrained again and subjected to further blows as others approached the location, intensifying the struggle and resulting in additional injuries.
As the investigation progressed, early descriptions of the incident shifted. Eyewitnesses near the police station, including a friend who accompanied another witness, asserted that both parties were involved in mutual aggression, indicating a bilateral confrontation rather than a one-sided attack. Those witnesses observed the altercation escalating into a charged fight with exchanges of force that included stabbing and the use of physical objects such as chairs to inflict damage.
From the testimonies gathered, investigators learned that a group of individuals converged on the scene and that a person described as Latino suffered a stabbing wound while others used force involving chairs. The crowd dynamics and ensuing violence led to a rapid deterioration of control, causing several participants to sustain injuries and prompting a dispersal attempt by those involved. Its emergence suggested that the individual wielding the knife acted in what some witnesses described as self-defense against a growing threat, while others characterized the same events as a chaotic, multi-victim assault.
Further clarifications came from statements indicating that a separate individual, who had some prior disagreement with the group, appeared at the venue later with several companions. This person allegedly faced a confrontation that drew a response from friends who drew knives to protect themselves amid a mass attack. Reports indicate that two men of Arab descent were seen restraining the subject and pushing him toward the ground while his companions fled, and that the incident involved a nose injury sustained by one party after a head impact as the scene was breaking apart.
Ultimately, these new lines of inquiry prompted a reclassification of the case. What had initially appeared as a straightforward riot involving a single aggrieved party grew into a broader, multi-actor confrontation. Based on the testimonies obtained and corroborated observations, prosecutors recategorized the events as a riot with multiple participants from both sides, and the individuals initially deemed victims were re-identified as suspects in the crime of riot.
The three detainees, aged between 18 and 22 and identified as Ecuadorian and Moroccan nationals, were placed at the disposal of Investigation Courts number seven in the same jurisdiction as part of the ongoing inquiry. The case continues to be examined by the corresponding authorities, and all individuals involved remain subject to the legal process as investigations proceed.