Two large fights prompt Anoka County Fair to shut down Saturday night

July 25, 2021 at 10:53PM
State Fair food vendors are setting up in parking lots all over the metro. At the Anoka County Fairgrounds, there's a Tom Thumb mini donuts, a cheese curd stand, and an ice cream stand. Families tailgate and make a picnic of it throughout the weekend.
Two large fights broke out at the Anoka County Fair on Saturday night, prompting officials to escort some people out and later ask everyone to leave. Above, a State Fair food vendor sold cheese curds at the Anoka County Fairgrounds in 2020. (Shari L. Gross, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Two large fights broke out at the Anoka County Fair on Saturday night, prompting officials to escort some people out and later ask everyone to leave.

The first fight erupted around 9:45 p.m. near the Midway, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release. The crowd scattered once authorities arrived; some people were escorted out.

About 11 p.m., another fight started. The release said officers from the Anoka Police Department, the Ramsey Police Department and the Coon Rapids Police Department responded and "mandated that all guests leave the premises."

Minor injuries were reported but everyone involved refused medical treatment, the news release said.

"It is tragic when selfish and immature actions of a few negatively impact so many others on what should have been an enjoyable summer evening at the fair," Sheriff James Stuart said in a statement. "We will continue to hold public safety as paramount and will not tolerate actions by those who cross the line in Anoka County."

A duty sergeant from the Sheriff's Office said the typical number of officers were at the fairgrounds Sunday, the fair's final day.

The incident remains under investigation, the Sheriff's Office said.

Erin Adler • 612-673-1781

about the writer

about the writer

Erin Adler

Reporter

Erin Adler is a suburban reporter covering Dakota and Scott counties for the Star Tribune, working breaking news shifts on Sundays. She previously spent three years covering K-12 education in the south metro and five months covering Carver County.

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