Number of victims rises in Cincinnati nightclub shooting

CINCINNATI -- The Cincinnati police chief has raised the number of people injured in a deadly nightclub shooting to 16.

Chief Elliot Isaac also says five people are still hospitalized, two in critical condition and three in serious condition.

A 17th victim, 27-year-old Obryan Spikes, was killed in the Sunday morning shooting at the Cameo nightclub.  Police began receiving calls at 1:30 a.m. about gunshots at the club near the Ohio River east of downtown Cincinnati. Isaac said some 200 people were inside the club, one of the few hip-hop venues in the city for music and dancing. 

“What we know at this point in the investigation is that several local men got into some type of dispute inside the bar, and it escalated into shots being fired from several individuals,” Isaac said.

It wasn’t clear how many people fired shots, but Isaac said Monday he believed more than one person opened fire, reports CBS affiliate WKRC.

Isaac told the Cincinnati City Council in a Monday update that four uniformed officers working off-duty security at the Cameo club were not permitted to work inside the club under department rules. They rushed inside the club once they heard the gunshots, he said.

The chief is urging witnesses to come forward and cooperate with the investigation.

There doesn’t appear to be any video footage of the deadly shooting, Isaac said.

Club patron Mauricio Thompson described a chaotic scene in which as many as 20 shots were fired as people scrambled to get away. He said there was a fight and people were yelling for security to intervene before the gunfire began.

“Once I got outside, people coming out bloody, gunshot wounds on them, some of their friends carrying them to the car, rushing them to the hospital,” Thompson told WCPO-TV. “It was just crazy.”

Isaac said he feels confident police will find those responsible. Cameo’s operator says it will remain closed until police and internal investigations are completed.