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Club bans ‘garage’ nights after killing
King’s Cross venue’s security now ‘one of the best’
A NIGHTCLUB has banned garage music after a man was shot dead there during a garage rave.
It follows warnings from police chiefs that the style of dance music is often associated with gun crime.
Father-of-two Daniel Ross was shot in the head on the dancefloor at the King’s Cross nightclub Scala in September at a night called Garage Fever.
The club’s owners were warned at a police summit two months ago that they should search everyone entering their venues, including staff and performers.
Scala, an old cinema hall, has refused all requests for an interview about 22-year-old Mr Ross’s death.
News of the garage ban at Scala came from Camden’s licensing chief Sergeant Bob Dear, who also revealed that the Pentonville Road club has bought a new hi-tech security camera that is worn on the head.
Cougar Pinks in Covent Garden, and Cross Central, also in King’s Cross, have similarly asked police for the cameras, which are already used by officers on raids.
Sgt Dear said he was urging up to 30 nightclubs in Camden to invest in the head pieces, which fit behind the ear like a pencil, and can record hours of footage.
He said clubs do not have CCTV on the dancefloor because it is too dark.
Sgt Dear also confirmed the club had sacked the doormen working on the night Mr Ross was killed, although the security firm are still employed.
Mr Ross’s mother Jean Ross has called for a public review of the Scala’s licence.
She said: “Security obviously wasn’t adequate – how did a gun get in? First people are supposed to be body searched and then they are searched by a metal detector. I believe the killers were let in with a gun.”
But Sgt Dear praised Scala for the improvements they had made following Mr Ross’s death, and called their security “one of the best”.
He said: “The garage music has gone, and on high-risk nights they up their security staff to 18-25.
“Their security was reviewed and found to be very good – one of the best in London.”
He said Scala now had more cameras in more areas and better lighting outside, which they did without instruction by police. |
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