The New York International Auto Show has a history of being one of the most exciting and transcendent public events in the area each year. With record-setting crowds and a plethora of innovative technologies on display, the 2010 show was no different.

Unfortunately, last weekend’s event was marred by a string of violent incidents that occurred not far from the Javits Center soon after the show concluded.

According to the Associated Press, hundreds of young men reportedly left the auto show and were caught brawling in the streets in midtown Manhattan late Sunday evening.

New York Police Department chief spokesman, Paul Browne, said that the mini riot resulted in 54 arrests, mostly on charges of disorderly conduct. Brown also noted that four people were shot during the melee and several alleged gang members were taken into custody. He added that those who were arrested were a bunch of “young men looking for trouble.”

It is still unclear whether the people who fired the shots were among those locked up for the evening. None of those who were injured are considered to be in life-threatening condition.

The high number of arrests may have been due to the fact that local police were on special alert, as this is not the first time that violence has broken out after the auto show.

In 2005, approximately 80 gang members of the Crips and Bloods engaged in a massive fistfight inside the convention center during the event. One year later, nearly 200 “rowdy teens” in the area created enough trouble that “the NYPD raised the white flag and told Times Square businesses to close for their safety,” according to The New York Post reports.

Unfortunately for the organizers of this year’s event, the riot spoiled what commentators called the best show in the six-year history of the car expo.

“We had an amazing crowd, a very family-oriented crowd,” said auto show spokesman Chris Sams. “The type of person who makes an auto show great, people listening to the presenters.”

Officials with the auto show also noted that the riot broke out nearly a mile away from the event, and that there has been no confirmation whether all of those who were arrested had attended the expo.