An elementary school in Ohio was put on lockdown on Monday after a brawl broke out during a reception for a kindergarten graduation, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
The brawl in the cafeteria at Mt. Healthy North Elementary School in Springfield Township broke out after one man started a fight with another man, police told the newspaper. The altercation between the two men erupted into a riot involving 20 other people as the kindergartners were enjoying their cookies and punch, the newspaper reported.
"The assault did induce panic during the assembly, causing several in attendance to be pushed," Springfield Township police wrote in a statement obtained by the newspaper. "The school was placed on lockdown and then eventually evacuated."
Police are looking for a 33-year-old Millvale resident named Raymond Walker, who is suspected of causing the incident when he allegedly attacked another man named Dominique Garrett.
It is not clear what caused the argument between the two, but it was not related to the school, Mt. Healthy Schools Superintendent Lori Handler told the Cincinnati Enquirer. The two also knew each other.
"It's unusual," Lieutenant Brian Uhl told the newspaper, "These things typically don't break out at kindergarten graduations, but obviously there was some issue between the two. It's just unfortunate it had to take place there."
Walker was thrown out of the school and fled the scene before police arrived, according to Handler. If he is arrested he could be charged with assault and inducing panic, Cincinnati Enquirer reported. Walker has a previous conviction for eluding police and injuring a female passenger when he drove into a tree.
It is not clear if police are also looking for Garrett, who was the only person injured in the brawl.
"It was very unnerving for my 5-year-olds to witness something like that," Handler told the newspaper. "It's so sad that adults can't control themselves in a joyous situation."
