A Teenager Punched a Police Horse in the Face During a Flash Mob at Temple University, Officials Say

Violence erupted near Temple University in Philadelphia late last week after about 200 students formed a flash mob, with some attacking their peers and at least one punching a police horse in the face, authorities and school officials said Monday.

Police said four teenagers were arrested on assault charges after the Friday melee broke out and ended with at least one police officer being knocked down, according to the Associated Press.

The large group of youngsters initially gathered outside of an off-campus movie theater shortly before 7 p.m., following directions of social media posts, before half of them broke off into smaller groups, Temple University said in a statement. Temple spokesman Ray Betzner told NBC10 that the teens were playing a “cat-and-mouse game” with police.

Police said one teenager punched a police horse in the face twice as officers on horses tried to break up the mob, and another boy threw a Temple officer to the ground, the AP reports. The students also attacked each other, although it’s unclear how many were injured.

“It’s very concerning that you can get a group of juveniles to pull together that quickly and some become violent,” Temple campus safety director Charles Leone told WPVI.