CHEEKTOWAGA, NY (WKBW) — In what has almost become a holiday tradition in and of itself, Cheektowaga police officers responded to the Walden Galleria Thursday evening, the day after Christmas.
Cheektowaga Police Captain Jeffery Schmidt told 7 News that the police presence was not in response to a specific incident at the mall. Rather, it was a coordinated and planned effort to sweep the mall at closing time, based on previous incidents on Boxing Day.
"What we found is it's just large groups of unsupervised youth, a few bad apples kind of turn the apple card, as they say, and cause so much problems and chaos and disaster. It makes it unsafe for everybody, including the other kids who are good kids," he said.
Capt. Schmidt said there was only one arrest related to the sweep and a few arrests for shoplifting. He said no one gave police a hard time or was physically pushed out to leave the mall.
"It took some time because with that large group, people had to, you know, find their way back to their cars or to the bus stop, whichever way they were going," he added.
Officers arrived at the mall around 7 p.m. Thursday. There were reports that they closed the mall then, but 7 News saw shoppers still heading inside. It was scheduled to close at 8 p.m.
There is a long history of post-Christmas violence breaking out at the Walden Galleria. It stretches back at least a decade.
7 News reported that in 2014, six people were arrested following a brawl at the mall.
Fights broke out on Boxing Day in 2018, 2021 and 2023.
Cheektowaga Police also took to social media earlier tonight to remind people of the mall's policy surrounding teenage visitors. The mall said its Parental Escort Policy (PEP) will be strictly enforced daily from 1 p.m. until close, effective until January 3, 2025.
The department wrote, "We want to remind everyone that the Walden Galleria has a parental escort policy in effect. Every day from 1:00 PM until close, any person under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian who is 21 or older. Each 21-year-old can supervise up to five teens."
"What we're finding is, rather than taking police action against the juvenile, what we really want is for the parents in the community to come and to help us make sure that these young persons are making appropriate and good decisions," Capt. Schmidt said.
