‘Fight between youths’ caused shopping centre lockdown

A man has been arrested after police and bomb squad conducted a major operation in central Melbourne.

The 33-year-old man was arrested after an incident in Collins St just after midday on Wednesday, according to police.

The incident is believed to be in relation to an ongoing arson and explosive squad investigation.

The street between Queen and Elizabeth St in both directions have since reopened after being blocked off for the police operation.

Police have confirmed the matter is not terror-related and there is no immediate threat to community safety.

At a press conference on Sunday evening, a spokesperson for SA Police revealed a group of three boys, believed to be under the age of 18, sparked the lockdown when they allegedly started a fight in the centre’s food court.

“I have looked at the CCTV. It involves three youth and I will call them boys under 18 years, of Caucasian appearance,” the spokesman said.

“They approached another group of boys and an altercation occurs. The expandable batons are seen and at this stage we cannot discount any other weapons, but we have reports that a knife may be involved.

“These three boys chased the other boys through the centre and through the CCTV we were able to see they entered the David Jones store, and that was the first part of our focus of where we put our specialist attention, to start clearing the centre to ensure the safety of all people could be insured.”

Earlier, police had been urging south Adelaide residents to avoid the shopping centre, with reports an armed offender was on the loose.

In a statement, authorities said “numerous police patrols” were on the scene responding to an incident at the major shopping centre around 3:30pm.

Shoppers have been evacuated and a lockdown imposed, with police believed to be hunting an armed offender.

Footage posted to Twitter, now X, shows heavily armed officers, some in what appears to be riot gear, approaching the shopping centre.

According to SA Ambulance, two people have been confirmed injured so far.

A woman in her 70s has a shoulder injury, while a person in their 30s had an injury to their knee.

Shoppers evacuated from the centre described chaotic scenes, with “people running everywhere” to flee.

Several people suggested an armed offender had made their way inside the centre’s David Jones, with one witness telling the Adelaide Advertiser she had seen a security guard running up an escalator to pursue them.

Other witnesses said there had been a group of up to five people inside David Jones, one allegedly armed with a large knife.

It is understood that while many shoppers have been successfully evacuated, a large number remain inside the centre barricaded in place.

SA Police have said they will provide more information as it becomes available, with authorities expected to host a press conference on the incident at 6pm AEST.

More to come.