A viral video showing a horde of males punching and kicking another at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Southie last weekend is at the center of a police investigation as authorities try to find four suspects connected to the melee.
Boston Police posted on Friday that they are urging the public to come forward to help identify three suspects involved in the assault and battery that the department has pictures of, and a fourth not pictured.
The incident unfolded around 4 p.m., on Sunday, in the area of East 2nd and M streets, near Medal of Honor Park and the parade route.
Authorities say three of the suspects they’re looking for are Black males, but did not provide further details on their appearance. The fourth suspect is a white male with a thin build who was wearing a Celtics jersey.
The video that’s gone viral, with more than 2 million views on X, shows one of the Black males wearing a black vest, navy long-sleeved shirt and black hat and another a black vest and red hoodie with light-colored sweatpants. The third is seen wearing a black hoodie and sweatpants.
There are other Black males seen surrounding the victim.
What led up to the incident is being “actively” reviewed, according to authorities who are urging anyone with information to contact District C-6 Detectives at 617-343-4742.
While on the ground, the suspects rolled the victim over from the road onto a steep grassy hill, the video shows. The victim is then seen trying to get up before the suspect wearing a black vest, navy long-sleeved shirt and black hat runs over and kicks him from behind. That caused the victim to run and dive head first into a fence along a baseball field.
The suspect wearing a black vest and red hoodie with light-colored sweatpants is then seen running down the hill before throwing an unidentified object at the victim. A white male in close proximity to the havoc is seen pointing and apparently laughing at the victim.
“Community members wishing to assist this investigation anonymously can do so by calling the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1 (800) 494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463),” authorities stated in a Friday release. “The Boston Police Department will stringently guard and protect the identities of all those who wish to help this investigation in an anonymous manner.
The investigation comes as City Councilor Ed Flynn, whose district includes Southie, is calling for “major changes” to the parade including possibly moving the route out of the neighborhood after the wave of drunkenness, destruction and violence. Not everyone is on board with the idea.
Pointing to the massive crowds seen this year, Flynn said earlier this week the city needs to take a “zero-tolerance” approach to debauchery at the popular parade, where drunken fights with police and other criminal activity resulted in at least 10 arrests that included gun, assault and battery, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct charges.
Flynn, a former chief marshal of the parade who represents South Boston on the City Council, said Southie residents, many seniors and young families were “disgusted with the public intoxication and fights throughout the parade route.”
“With almost a million visitors to South Boston for the parade, we can’t sustain an ‘anything goes’ attitude any longer,” he added. “This neighborhood deserves to be treated with respect.”
