Four stabbed in melee outside Denver NFL stadium

[December 13, 2013]  DENVER (Reuters) — Four people were stabbed, with one critically wounded, in a melee late on Thursday in a parking lot outside a stadium hosting a U.S. National Football League game, police said.

The clash occurred outside Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, where the Denver Broncos were playing the San Diego Chargers.

Three of the men who were stabbed were in custody, conscious and talking, and a fourth possible stabbing victim fled the scene, said city police department spokesman Steve Warneke.

The incident was witnessed by fans leaving the stadium but further details were unclear, he said.

The Chargers beat the Broncos 27-20, bolstering the California franchise's playoff chances and delivering the Denver football team its first home loss of the season.

The confrontation followed a series of recent violent incidents at U.S. football stadiums.

Earlier this month, a man died after a struggle outside Arrowhead Stadium, the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, during a game against Denver.

(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson, Keith Coffman; editing by John Stonestreet)

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