South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas says there are “legitimate questions” about whether it was an “overreaction” to lock down Adelaide’s biggest shopping centre due to a brawl between groups of youths – but says the action was understandable in a “post-Bondi” environment.

It came as SA Police said they had arrested a third teenager over the Westfield Marion lockdown, which began just before 3pm on Sunday after reports of an armed person inside.

The 15-year-old boy was expected to appear in the Christies Beach Youth Court later on Monday.

It follows the earlier arrest of two other boys, aged 15 and 16. They appeared in the Adelaide Youth Court earlier on Monday.

Opposing bail, the prosecutor told court there was “a great sense of fear instilled in all shoppers who remained at Marion, as it took some time to determine the nature of the offending and the risk to the public”.

“Brandishing items of this nature, being a machete and extendable batons, is something that’s not trivial,” he said.

“The risk to the public that’s caused by persons engaging in wanton violence of this nature in such a public atmosphere causes great risk to public safety.”

All three teenagers have been charged with assault, affray and aggravated robbery. The first two arrested were remanded in custody, pending a bail report to assess their suitability for home detention.

Sunday’s emergency came less than three months after a man with a knife killed six people at Westfield Bondi Junction in Sydney.

SA Police said there were reports that two groups of teenage boys, including some with extendable batons, were fighting in the Westfield Marion food court on Sunday before one group was chased through the centre and into a David Jones store.

Some shoppers later told the Seven Network they were told to “run for their lives” after reports of an armed offender – warnings echoed on large digital signs inside the centre. Seven and other networks aired footage of the scenes as frightened people took refuge in shops while police searched the building.

Dozens of people tried to run to safety. A 77-year-old woman suffered a shoulder injury, while another injured a knee.

One woman who was in a cinema told how the incident unfolded.

“We were in the movies and we just heard this noise going on saying ’emergency’… and nobody really knew what it was – if it was a phone or something,” she said.

“Someone went out of the movies and all of a sudden everyone just came running in – just sprinting incoming, yelling ‘run, run’.

“Then we got up and started sprinting towards the emergency exit.”

On Monday, Malinauskas said it was “easy to say with hindsight” that Westfield security’s response “was an overreaction”.

“I think the reality is, post-Bondi, there is a heightened sense of alert from Westfield and shopping centre operators, which is understandable,” he said.

“Some kids yesterday got in a brawl over what sounds like not very much and it then precipitated a response from Westfield security that then led to a degree of chaos and alarm throughout the centre.

“Which begs the question, what were these kids thinking? Where are the parents? Because in today’s day and age, particularly post-Bondi, people have got a heightened degree of alert, particularly private security from a shopping centre.

“It’s easy for us to say in hindsight that it was a massive overreaction, and I get that. But they’ve also got to act on the side of caution as well.”

Malinauskas said he had spoken to SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens during the incident and said getting accurate information out to the public as quickly as possible was essential.

“There was rapid public messaging happening within Westfield shopping centre. There was a question whether or not that messaging reflected what was actually happening,” he said.

“I think South Australia Police handled the situation as best they could given some of the misinformation that was being reported [and] that heightened the alarm yesterday.”

In court on Monday, prosecutors said the alleged robbery victim had noticed three males following him to the Westfield and he feared they were about to take the Trap Star hoodie he was wearing.

“It’s an expensive hoodie,” the prosecutor said.

He told court the alleged victims and his friends went to the KFC outlet at the food court, where there were about 100 people.

“[The alleged victim] observes the other three boys approach one of his three friends. The weapons are alleged to have been brandished by all three. The friend returned to the hoodie owner and indicated they were demanding his jumper,” the prosecutor said.

“It’s at that point that the accused has produced a machete and has pointed it towards the group.”

The prosecutor said the alleged victim and his friends then fled. As they did, the teenager dumped his hoodie on the ground.

The 16-year-old’s lawyer told the court the youth was unaware of the lockdown until hours later.

“The fear that’s ultimately caused by Westfield … it was never [the defendant’s] intention that things escalated to the point they did, in so far as the response is concerned,” she said.

Malinauskas said SA Police would review the incident including communications. But he was “loath to pile in on” Westfield management for its response given the circumstances.

“Westfield enacted a whole range of emergency protocols without much reference to South Australia Police, and that is something that’ll be looked at during the course of the review,” he said.

“Put yourself in Westfield’s shoes. Imagine if it ended up being very serious and they hadn’t escalated their concern quickly. Then everyone would be scrutinising that.

“It’s not their fault this happened. It’s because of a group of young muppets who decided to get in a brawl in a food court over goodness knows what. They’re the ones that deserve scrutiny of their actions.”

-with AAP

This article first appeared in InDaily and is republished here with permission