'Wild west' bar fight leaves man dead in Vancouver, police say
A shooting incident that left one man dead and another wounded began with a wild brawl inside a downtown Vancouver strip club Wednesday night, Vancouver police say.
The incident began when a fight erupted between two groups of men in the pub of the Cecil Hotel on Granville Street some time after 10 p.m. PT, according to Const. Tim Fanning.
"Something that started off as a wild west fight in a bar quickly turned deadly last night," said Fanning on Thursday morning.
"Fists, chairs, bottles were flying inside the bar. A shot was heard. A flash was seen. Everybody started running out the back doors where the fight continued. At one point, there was probably between 20 and 30 men that were involved in this fight," said Fanning
Police responded to the first 911 call at 10:30 p.m., but by the time they arrived one minute later, the first shots inside the pub had already gone off, Fanning said.
They found the pub in pandemonium. In the alley behind the club, a Richmond man, 30, was slumped against a dumpster with a fatal gunshot wound to his head.
They also found a Surrey man, 32, a few blocks away with a bullet wound to the leg. He was taken to St. Paul's Hospital.
Police did not release the names of the two victims, but said the shooting appeared to be gang-related.
"Both men that were shot last night … were known to police. They were gang associates," Fanning said.
Police detained dozens of witnesses for questioning, and seized surveillance video and four vehicles, but the shooter remains at large and police had not yet released a description.
Police are asking the public for help in solving the crime, and promised anonymity to anyone with information.
Service by one of the city's two largest cab companies was interrupted by the police investigation.
More than 100 Black Top taxis were stuck in the company parking lot across the alley from the pub after the area was cordoned off for the police investigation, causing a delay in getting the cabs out to deal with the morning rush hour.
The company was eventually able to get the cabs on the road by 7 a.m.