Concord Police Officer Assaulted During Melee At Memorial Field

CONCORD, NH — A police officer working a detail was assaulted while trying to break up a fight at Memorial Field after the Concord High School football game on Friday.

Around 10 p.m., a fight broke out in the parking lot of the field. During the melee, the officer reported to dispatch they were punched in the back of the head. Most of the students involved in the fight dispersed. One boy was seriously injured.

Concord fire and rescue teams were requested to the field while the officer described the male involved with the incident. The suspect was described as Black, a little less than 6 feet tall, and wearing white shorts and a black sweatshirt. The suspect fled the area toward the Gallen state complex.

Other officers began searching the area, including the complex and side streets. Three males were found walking inside the state hospital complex, but they did not match the assailant's description. Later, an officer reported finding white shorts and a sweatshirt rolled up in a ball near a garage in the complex.

A New Hampshire State Police K-9 was requested to the area while others at Memorial Field were questioned. A parent of the injured boy was also called to pick up her son. Other parents were also called to pick up their children. Nearly all were underage, according to police checks.

One officer met up with boys who were walking on Liberty Street and stopped them for questioning. One reportedly dropped a backpack before being questioned, an officer said. An officer told others they believed the boys were involved in the fight but were not the suspect who assaulted the police officer.

In a separate area of the grounds, a boy hid behind a dumpster. Later, an officer reported he was taken into custody but was not the suspect. The boy was driven home to Jennings Drive later.

The K-9 unit arrived and went to the area where the shorts and sweatshirt were located to see if it could get a track of the suspect.

At just before 10:30 p.m., firefighters cleared the scene.

After questioning several witnesses, officers began patrolling Jennings Drive and other areas of the North End, attempting to find the suspect.

Another officer reported seeing two boys on Westbourne Road, including one that matched the suspect's description. When the officer turned around to recheck the area, the boys were gone. A second officer also went to the area to assist the first officer with the search.

After the K-9 reported a possible tracking hit in the area of Concord High School, officers began searching the high school grounds, the Irving gas station, and side streets.

Just before 11 p.m., a boy was found in the area of Thayer Pond Road and Hillside Road. The boy reportedly had no shoes on and was wearing a T-shirt and gray shorts, and the officer confirmed he was one of the two boys he had seen on Westbourne Road earlier. The officer said the boy was not answering questions but did say he lived at Royal Gardens. The boy also matched the description of the suspect, the officer told dispatch. Police took a picture of the boy and called his parents to pick him up.

While dealing with the first boy, the second boy from Westbourne Road was also found. He lived in the area and admitted to the police he was involved in the fight. He did not match the description of the suspect who punched the police officer, the officer said.

Dispatch also sent police to Rundlett Street to investigate an incident where kids were surveilling a home on the street, peeking into windows, and appearing to try and gain access to one of the homes. The dispatcher did not know if the incident was related to the fight, but an officer was sent to investigate anyway.

This is the second incident at a football game this season. Two juveniles were given summonses in September for possessing alcohol at the game. In the past, there have been assaults and even a strong-armed robbery at the games.

The end result for the team was good for CHS: Crimson Tide beat Nashua South, 42 to 24.

Concord NH Patch will update this post when more information when it becomes available.

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