AN ARGUMENT between two women snowballed into a massive brawl involving up to 50 people in a Cloncurry hotel in the early hours of Saturday morning.
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Police say as many as 50 people fought or encouraged the violence at Cloncurry’s Oasis Hotel about 1.30am.
Inspectors from the Office of Liquor and Gaming, in town auditing Cloncurry’s hotels, witnessed what happened.
The Office of Liquor and Gaming and Cloncurry Police will investigate the matter.
Cloncurry Senior Sergeant Brad Rix said police have made proceedings against 12 people involved in the “large scale melee”, aged between 18 to 50 years.
They are charged with a variety of offences including public nuisance, disorderly conduct and obstructing police.
“No one was taken into custody on the night due to the scale of the incident and the limited numbers of police present,” Senior Sergeant Rix said.
He said future prosecution was the main aim for the three police officers and liaison officer, as their safety needed to be considered while dispersing the crowd.
People identified in the brawl have been banned from Cloncurry’s licensed premises and events for either 10 days or three months, Senior Sergeant Rix said.
“It is disappointing that some people’s personal issues with others are unable to be controlled on a night out at a licensed establishment, leading to ugly incidents such as this, with hefty infringement notices and court appearances being the ultimate outcome,” Senior Sergeant Rix said.
“It’s only a matter of time before someone involved in one of these fights punches someone with such force that death or serious injury is the result.
“The ‘One Punch Can Kill’ message is simple and should not be lost or forgotten.”
The Oasis Hotel publican confirmed the incident but did not comment.
