HOUSTON (AP) — Authorities searched Wednesday for two men suspected of gunning down three people and wounding a fourth inside of a Houston nightclub.
Police were called to the DD Sky Club at about 9:45 p.m. Tuesday in response to reports that there were multiple people dead inside, Police Commander Caroleta Johnson told the Houston Chronicle.
Officers found three people dead at the scene and a fourth person wounded and in critical condition, Johnson said. Police said those who were killed were 19-year-old Jailyn Bernard Page, 21-year-old Bryce Lee Goddard and 22-year-old Christopher Donshae Jackson. The person who was wounded is 17-year-old Sir John Mitchell.
Investigators believe the gunmen opened fire after a fight broke out, but police did not have additional information on the shooters.
Kade Trammell, a 20-year-old local hip hop artist who was among the roughly 30 people at the club’s open mic show, told the newspaper he heard seven to 10 gunshots before he and his friends dropped to the floor and then fled.
“We got really scared, we ran for our … lives,” he said. “Everybody started running for their lives after the gunshots,” said Trammell.
Trammell said he was on the verge of a panic attack when he fled.
“We got so scared we ran out the club and we tried leaving as fast as we could,” he said. “We did not want to die.”
The nightclub was not allowed to be open under current coronavirus pandemic restrictions, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said in a email Wednesday.
Earlier this month, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott allowed bars to open at 50% capacity if county officials agreed. But Harris County, where Houston is located, has chosen to keep bars closed, said Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña.
The commission said it has suspended the club’s liquor license for 30 days and the agency is also conducting an investigation into the shooting.
