Crime & Safety

Fighting Parents Arrested at Youth Soccer Game, Police Say

A referee's call sparked a physical altercation between a Fanwood man and a Cranford resident on Saturday, according to report.

A referee's call sparked a fight between two parents at a youth soccer game Saturday afternoon at Park Middle School, Scotch Plains Police said.

Tomas Frias, 54, of Cray Terrace in Fanwood, and Mark Bishop, 51, of Craig Place in Cranford, were each charged with fourth-degree aggravated assault because the alleged altercation took place at a youth sporting event, police said.

The 11-year-old girls soccer game was stopped because numerous players were upset after witnessing the altercation, police said.   

When police arrived at about 4:30 p.m., the two parents were already separated but numerous witnesses said there was a physical altercation between the two over a call the referee made, police said. Both parents then admitted to the officers there was a physical altercation and both were placed under arrest, police said.
 
The two men were processed and released and are scheduled to appear in Union County Court in Elizabeth. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.