Raleigh mayor accused of making young Rangers fan cry at Canes game

With the Hurricanes down 6-2 in the third period, some Canes fans started heading for the exits, freeing up seats near the ice and tunnel used by visiting team to enter and exit the ice.

Fans accused Baldwin of "berating" the girl until she cried, and they asked arena security to intervene.

"Security had to tell the mayor to leave the young girl alone and that she was allowed to be there, to show her sign, asking her favorite Ranger for a stick after the game," said a Twitter user with the handle @rozo.

WRAL independently confirmed the incident, speaking by phone with a fan who would only identify herself as Mary.

"[Baldwin] was yelling at the little girl with her finger in her face, and the dad and everyone said, ‘Hey, they gave these seats to them and it’s all good. We’re good,'" the witness said. 

Baldwin told WRAL News the social media posts don't reflect what actually happened with the two Rangers fans.

The mayor confirmed she alerted security and that the girl’s father became upset. At that point, Baldwin said she offered her seats to the father and daughter because the girl was upset. Nearby fans escalated the situation by yelling at the mayor, Baldwin said.

The whole experience was “traumatizing,” Baldwin said, and she and her husband left the game early because of the incident.