Chicago police shut down Deja Vu Showgirls nightclub in South Loop after overnight shooting

ByABC7 Chicago Digital Team and Tre Ward WLS logo
Monday, August 12, 2024
CPD shuts down Deja Vu club in South Loop after shooting injures 4
Chicago police shut down Deja Vu Showgirls nightclub Monday after an overnight shooting injured 4 people in the club on South Clinton Street.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago police have shut down the Deja Vu Showgirls nightclub after multiple shootings have happened over the past few months, the most recent happening overnight.

Four people were wounded in the overnight shooting, police said, which happened around 3:36 a.m. inside the Deja Vu Showgirls club in the 700-block of South Clinton Avenue.

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Police said multiple people were involved in a verbal altercation inside the nightclub when someone opened fire, hitting four people.

"Just they started shooting, so I hit the floor" Kelly Pugue, who works at the nightclub, said. "It was over with as soon as I hit the floor, and everybody ran out."

Partygoer Jasmine Connor said she heard the gunfire just as she was coming out of the bathroom, then saw wounded men on the floor.

"Some girl was doing CPR on him. We were trying to tell them, like, 'Stop moving him around,' you know, because the bullets travel," she said. "It was tragic, for real."

By Monday afternoon, Chicago police placed a notice on the front door of the nightclub.

A 27-year-old man was shot multiple times and transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

A 35-year-old man was wounded to the thigh and buttocks and transported to Stroger Hospital in fair condition.

A 32-year-old man was shot in the thigh and was transported to Stroger Hospital in fair condition.

A 26-year-old man was shot in the abdomen and was transported to Stroger Hospital in fair condition.

Witnesses said it happened during an after-party event.

"In the midst of them being shot on the floor, we tried to help him. I ran downstairs. The police were pulling up. I told them that somebody was shot upstairs," Connor said.

A security guard who was inside and did not want to be named said one of the people shot was also working security.

"That's what you got to do when you're in Chicago, like this, especially in this line of duty," the guard said.

This isn't the first time violence unfolded in and out of the club. In fact, last November, a 30-year-old man was wounded in a drive-by shooting while, police say, he was escorting someone out of the venue. One person was taken into custody in that incident.

"This is, like, the second incident I've heard of in very recent times," said Archana Singh, who lives near the club. "I want it to be a safe area when my family comes, too. It's concerning. I mean, me and my dog walk around here all the time. We have friends that visit. I want it to be a safe area when my family comes, too."

No one is in custody and Area Three detectives are investigating. Police have not said whether any of the wounded was also the gunman.

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