And here's how you can tell the story was written by an English publication rather than an American. Where else would they not only use the word fracas, but include in the story the history of the word, unrelated to the actual subject of the story...
What is a 'fracas'?
"Fracas" has French roots but it is originally from the Italian "fracassare", to cause uproar.
Its first noted use in English was in 1727, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. The
writer Lady Mary Worley Montagu wrote in a letter: "A… violent fracas took place between
the infantry-colonel and his lady."
If you speak British English, you pronounce it "frah-car", but Americans tend to pronounce
it "fray-cuss".
Neil Taylor, managing partner of The Writer, a language consultancy business, says use of the
word peaked in 1945, and has dropped off since then. "It's a nicely non-specific word," he says,
"although you do get the sense of something physical - without anything being confirmed."