DRAMATIC CCTV images showing
a gunman spraying a Mac 10 sub-machine gun around a Midland nightclub,
with customers cowering in fear, have been shown to councilors.
The shocking footage was played yesterday at a meeting of Sandwell
Councils licensing panel as they met to consider the future of the
Cascade nightclub in West Bromwich.
The Black Country Mail revealed a month ago how terror came to the
club when two gunmen, one armed with the sub-machine gun, marched into
the foyer of the High Street club at 4am.
More details about the terrifying incident came to light at the
meeting, with Sandwell licensing Officer Insp Pat Smythe revealing that
at least eight rounds were fired from the machine gun.
The incident led to police slapping a closure order on the club and
strict conditions being applied.
Police yesterday asked for last entry to the club to be fixed at 1am,
with Insp Smythe also offering to compromise at 1.30am. But the panel,
chaired by Coun Joy Edis, decided to impose 2am as the last entry to the
club, which has been open for seven months.
The panel heard that since the incident, the club has upgraded its
CCTV and brought in a top security firm.
Insp Smythe said he would not put up with premises which had the
propensity to attract people with machine guns.
But Angela Edwards, wife of licensee George Edwards, said the
incident was a reckless, mindless act which the club could do nothing
about.
She told the committee that the club had been unfairly blamed for
what had happened.
Mrs. Edwards said: We do take safety very seriously at Cascade and
we need to be working in partnership with police to do something about
the disaffected youth in the area.
Insp Smythe said he accepted the decision. He said he hoped the
strict security measures now in place at Cascade would prevent any
similar incidents.
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