GARDEN CITY, N.Y. -- Police on Long Island had to shut down a mall appearance by Canadian teen pop singer Justin Bieber after thousands of young girls showed up, and got a little too wild.
Girls and adults in the crowd of nearly 3,000 started pushing and shoving on Friday as they waited for the 15-year-old from Stratford, Ont. to show at a clothing store at the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City.
Bieber's appearance was still two hours away when things got out of hand.
Five people were taken to hospitals with minor injuries.
Island Records, which released the Canadian teen's first album, My World, this week, apologized to fans in a written statement.
"People started screaming, 'Justin!' And they ran forward and the ropes collapsed," said 13-year-old Aimee Macchi. She said she was knocked to the floor in the rush. "Everyone was pushing. There was no room to breathe."
Police arrested a vice president from Bieber's record label, Island Def Jam Records, saying he wasn't cooperating with attempts to disperse the crowd.
James Roppo, 44, of Hoboken, N.J., was charged with a series of misdemeanours, including endangering the welfare of children and obstructing governmental administration.
Some kids and their parents had camped out before dawn for the 4 p.m. event.
Bieber never made it into the building.
