Several Boys Arrested After Multiple People Attacked in Boston's Downtown Crossing

Several juveniles ranging between ages 11 and 17 were arrested after numerous people were attacked Sunday night in downtown Boston.

Boston police were called to Downtown Crossing shortly before 8 p.m. for a report of a group of juveniles causing a disturbance and throwing bottles at people in the area of Franklin and Washington streets.

Responding officers saw a group fleeing from the scene headed down Franklin Street, towards Hawley Street, where they were stopped. Police say all of the juveniles were uncooperative with officers.

According to police, five adults were attacked; three of the victims suffered non-life threatening injuries. One person was kicked and punched while on the ground. Another was punched in the back of the head. And a third was punched in the jaw.

A 12-year-old boy from Arlington, a 16-year-old boy from Framingham, and a 14-year-old boy from Cambridge were arrested and are facing delinquency and assault charges, police said. An 11-year-old boy from Arlington was also arrested and released to a parent.

Police say several other juveniles ranging in age from 15 to 17 will be summonsed into Boston Juvenile Court upon further investigation.

Prior to the attack, police say the group was removed from TJ Maxx after causing a disturbance inside the store.

Officers were patrolling Downtown Crossing on Monday after the violent incident over the weekend, and business owners in the area are fed up with the ongoing violence.

"From 12 to 15 years old, they have no, they don't care, they don't have no scruples, nothing. Don't fear consequences, no respect," said Karl Volker, of Underground Express. "Down here, the toughest time to do business is between 2:30 and 5 when the kids get out of school, the kids come down here, then they go through Downtown Crossing and that is when the trouble starts."

"The younger ones just don't care, they want to vandalize, they want to fight, if someone just brushes against them, already they are angry, obnoxious, want to fight and totally out of control," Volker added.

Sunday marks just the latest incident in that part of Boston. A woman was attacked in April 2022 by a group of teens who were said to be angry about the way her hair was braided.

Just blocks away in Chinatown, two men were critically injured during a shooting.

"I have been in Boston 20 years and it is really out of control," said a woman who didn't want to show her face on camera.

She says she knows firsthand about the violence in the area. A few months ago, she claims a group of girls between the ages of 10 and 12 threatened to kill her after she confronted them about littering in Downtown Crossing.

"They told me they would come after me, and one of them had a knife, and I ran inside the store and the guy locked the door, so it is getting pretty bad," she said.

Michael Nichols, who is president of the Downtown Business Improvement District, says despite recent violent encounters like Sunday, violent crime in the area is down.

"There is a really robust network of work that occurs between security and BPD downtown, so the few times we do have incidents they tend to be addressed promptly," Nichols said.

It was quiet in the area Monday night, but people say the worry remains.