A confrontation Thursday morning at the Providence Place Mall in Rhode Island led to the fatal stabbing of one man and the arrest of four others, police said.
The stabbing on the third floor in the food court area happened just after 11:30 a.m. and followed a verbal argument that turned into a physical altercation between two groups of people, Police Chief Hugh Clements said.
"There's a verbal dispute in the food court that leads to six young men involved in this melee," Clements said.
Officers chased down four men and arrested them as they were attempting to flee, he said.
"People on both sides of the weapon know each other. There's familiarly between victims, suspects," Clements said.
The man who was stabbed was taken to an area hospital where police said he died from his injuries. His name has not yet been released.
During the incident, the mall stayed open for shoppers.
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"I just heard this commotion. I looked over my counter, and there was a fight that broke out," witness Dan Valdez recalled.
The names of those taken into custody or possible charges have not been released.
The death was the city's 11th homicide of the year and believed to be the first at the mall.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
