HCSO: 23 juveniles and 6 adults arrested after canceled after-party at Astro Skate leads to riot

BRANDON, Fla. — Almost 30 people were arrested Saturday night after a fight broke out in the area surrounding a Tampa-area skating rink.

Around 9:20 p.m. Saturday, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) received a call from off-duty deputies working at Astro Skate of Brandon requesting help with a large crowd fighting in the parking lot.

According to HCSO, the fight happened after a planned after-party was canceled. Astro Skate requires people hosting private parties to hire an off-duty deputy for the event. When the party organizers did not do that or follow other rules, the party was canceled.

Following the cancellation of the party, the group went on social media and asked people to come and riot at the business and confront law enforcement, according to HCSO.

Deputies said approximately 400 to 500 people gathered at the Astro Skate parking lot. They issued warnings and told people to leave.

One group left the parking lot and attacked a juvenile inside the Time Out Barber Shop. The victim was beaten and thrown through a glass window, according to deputies. The victim had non-life-threatening injuries and had a severe cut on the hand, according to deputies.

Another group went into a convenience store, damaged wine bottles worth $500, and stole an unknown amount of merchandise. Officials said the crowd was involved in fighting, damaging businesses, stealing, and disrupting normal business operations.

"I am outraged by the violent and disruptive behavior that targeted hard-working people and businesses and created harm, fear, and chaos in our community. Let me make this unequivocally clear: this violent and destructive behavior will never, under any circumstances, be tolerated in Hillsborough County," said Sheriff Chad Chronister.

Six adults were arrested, and 23 juveniles were taken into custody.

Jeff Gant says his 16-year-old son was one of the young people arrested. However, he says his son was not fighting or destroying property but was waiting for his ride near the skating rink and was trespassed.

“Use this as a learning experience. When you see things starting up, call one of us parents to come get you. Go to a safe place, a store, a gas station," Gant said.

Gant reached out to ABC Action News because he has concerns about how his son was detained.

The dad claims his 16-year-old was held for maybe eight hours in a squad car before he was processed at the Hillsborough County Juvenile Assessment Center.

According to a spokesperson for the sheriff's office, "several juveniles were detained in our patrol cars due to the unexpected influx of arrestees after the Astro Skate incident."

However, the spokesperson said air conditioning inside the squad cars remained on, juvenile arrestees could use the restroom, and they had their handcuffs moved from behind their bodies to the front.

Gant, however, says his son’s handcuffs remained behind his back for hours.

“I would like an explanation," he said.

Meanwhile, Astro Skate will have more security on-hand this weekend.

“We apologize to our business partners around, you know. We’re going to try to do better, and that’s all I can tell you," said owner Chris Maganias.

Otherwise, Maganias said he has no plans to scale back or alter his business model. He said his business hosts young people successfully daily and does not want to punish them for the actions of a few.