Sophia Michaels
A false report of a mass shooting event sent panic throughout the crowd at a Wiz Khalifa and Logic concert in suburban Indianapolis Friday, causing audience members to flee the venue by climbing over fences and scrambling over seats.
According to a statement from the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, the incident took place at approximately 10:28 p.m. at the Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana, after “a disturbance” was reported from the outdoor venue’s lawn seating area. “Security staff responded quickly, and all the subjects nearby began exiting the area on foot. The emergency action plan was initiated and followed, and all gates including non-public exits were opened,” the statement said. “Police staff deployed multiple quick response teams and swept the area. No weapons were found.” Authorities added that three people were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries.
In an email to Rolling Stone, representatives for the Ruoff Music Center and Live Nation, who manages the venue, praised the response to the incident. “Thank you to staff and local authorities for acting quickly to support everyone in attendance,” the statement read.
Video posted to Twitter showed fans seated in the lawn leaving the scene — some running, others appearing bewildered at the chaos — while Khalifa performs onstage before stopping abruptly. The man filming the scene remarks that audience members did not pass through metal detectors before the show. “I didn’t hear a gun go off,” the man’s friend says off screen. Indianapolis Star reporter Rory Appleton, who attended the event, also stated in a Twitter post that he did not hear gunshots.
Khalifa and Logic were performing as a part of the rappers’ ongoing joint-headlining Vinyl Verse Summer tour, which wraps September 2 in St. Louis. Representatives for Khalifa have not returned Rolling Stone‘s requests for comment.
The mass panic is the third such incident to take place at a music event this summer. In May, false reports of a “security incident” at the Lovers and Friends music festival in Las Vegas caused hundreds of concertgoers to bolt from the venue, leaving three people injured. In August, an 18-year-old working security at Lollapalooza in Chicago fabricated a mass shooting alert in an attempt to leave work early. The woman, Janya B. Williams, was arrested and faces a felony charge of making a false terrorism claim.
