Persons of interest sought in violent northeast Calgary clash

Calgary police released photos of these men, believed to be persons of interest in a violent clash between two rival groups of the city's Eritrean community. (Supplied)

Calgary police have released a series of photos of men considered "persons of interest" in a violent clash along Falconridge Boulevard earlier this month that saw many people injured.

The clash began at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 2, when two groups from the city's Eritrean community with opposing views engaged in a fight using weapons like sticks, bats and pipes.

Approximately a dozen people were hospitalized, some of them with serious injuries.

Since then, police say they have worked with the parties involved to "prevent any further escalation or retaliation," and created an investigative task force to identify those involved.

On Thursday, police said that while a number of those involved have already been identified, investigators have created a web page that includes photos of 16 additional "persons of interest" who they believe "are involved in some capacity."

"The photos of the individuals that we're releasing, have been identified by our investigative task force to have some level of involvement," said Supt. Scott Boyd at a news conference, adding that the 16 men pictured played "varying roles" in the clash.

"We're sifting through 600-plus hours of CCTV footage, body-worn cameras, other digital evidence that has been brought forward, and no one view necessarily captures a single event, so it really is an investigative puzzle that we're putting together to allow us a deeper appreciation of what any of these 16 individuals are responsible for."

Police are asking for anyone who can identity any of the men in the 16 pictures to contact them by emailing [e-mail].

In the days following the clash, Calgary Police Chief Mark Neufeld said it was the "largest violent event" in Calgary's recent memory.