Shopping centre statement after viral video of girl causing 'mayhem' stuns onlookers

A major UK shopping centre has issued a statement after wild videos went viral on social media allegedly showing a young girl causing 'mayhem'.

In the various clips, a young girl is spotted clambering on top of an escalator, being ushered away by security guards, and reportedly yanking another shopper's hair whilst insideManchester's Arndale Shopping Centre.

One video capturing the incident has been viewed by more than 55 million people on TikTok within just three days. Another snippet on X has amassed over 13 million views in barely 12 hours, with folks from all corners of the globe sharing their opinions on the footage. It comes after a family of 10 'barged out' of pub in brazen dine and dash after £320 meal.

READ MORE: Grandad stuck in holiday destination as dream Greece trip takes nightmare turn

READ MORE: Woman searches her husband's name online and awful discovery leads to his arrest

Some American viewers have drawn comparisons between the girl and children's book character Junie B Jones, as well as The Grinch's Cindy Lou Who.

The footage appears to kick off with a young girl in a pink coat and her family having a row with a team of security staff outside a shop, alongside another group of shoppers. It's unclear what is being said, but online speculation suggests that the girl and her family were accused of shoplifting, with security seen separating the two groups of shoppers.

As the clip rolls on, the girl and her family depart, before another young girl hurls an unidentified object towards where the security guards and the other group of shoppers are standing, reports the Manchester Evening News.

In a subsequent video, believed to follow the earlier footage, the girl in the pink coat is seen descending an escalator ahead of two security staff.

She then hoists herself onto the central partition between the moving staircases and climbs onto the adjacent escalator, which is stationary, proceeding to walk up its steps.

At the top, she confronts a group of onlookers, before being filmed yanking the hair of a female shopper. The girl then returns down the escalator, all the while sporting a grin.

The collection of videos has sparked a flurry of reactions, with some labelling the young girl a 'diva' while others condemn her behaviour.

One viewer commented: "the pink jacket girl CLIMBING OVER the escalator, going back down it, and then going back up just gag her is frying me like WHO IS THIS DIVA LMFAOOO."

They continued: "this entire situation is so chaotic i'm crying". Another remarked: "That escalator wasn't ready for a diva moment".

While some were amused by the footage, there were those who expressed disapproval. A commenter stated: "I don't find her behaviour that funny." Another added: "Parents need to start parenting."

There was also criticism towards those glamorising the girl's antics, with one individual questioning: "What an imbecile. Endangering others safety as well as her own. Why we calling her diva again?"

One person said: "Hateee the way everyone's hyping this child up, like that is not a diva stop enabling this behaviour omg."

Another voiced their concern: "maybe it's because i actually have kids and I'd die of embarrassment if they were like this, but the response to this girl overall being 'go off queen' is so ****ed."

However, while some may think the event is recent, the Manchester Evening News has confirmed that the original videos were first shared on TikTok in March 2022 by @dreams_dreams24.

The same account has recently re-uploaded the videos, causing 'pink coat girl' to become a viral sensation on TikTok once again.

Shameless star Kelli Hollis also weighed in on the footage with her 293,000 followers, labelling the youngster a 'little madam'. In her video, Kelli commented: "She ain't a little diva, her. She's going to be a little ****ing nightmare is what she is."

She continued: "It's funny because it's just pure cheek but she's a little madam."

Manchester Arndale's spokesperson said: "We're aware of a video that has been recently circulated on social media, which shows an altercation that took place in Manchester Arndale and was attended by members of our Security team."

They clarified: "Following a review of the footage, we can confirm that this is a historic incident that occurred several years ago."