Stephanie Rothman and Kayla Shepperd
6 minutes ago
ST. LOUIS — One of the owners of Europe Night Club is speaking out after Citizens for a Greater Downtown St. Louis accused them and the nightclub industry of crimes, including a recent incident involving a gun in a downtown parking lot.
“My customers are the victim, they are not the problem,” said Europe Night Club partner Bobbi Baker.
Baker spoke out after Citizens for a Greater Downtown St. Louis claimed on Twitter that they were responsible for an incident in a nearby parking lot around 2:30 a.m. Saturday.
Something she said has nothing to do with their business.
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“Crime is not a club problem. Crime is a city problem,” Baker said. “It’s all over St. Louis; places that have the volume of people that we do are targeted.
The tweets showed screenshots from surveillance video which Baker said showed a group of people in the parking lot trying to defend themselves against a gunman.
“There is a lack of police, there is a lack of security. We have secondary security every night we’re open, but these parking lots don’t have it,” Baker said.
The club does not own the car park, but uses it for guests, as well as for guests of the city museum and hotel. During the day there are a lot of people watching, but at night it is easier for criminals to target people.
“With the crime rate, there should be more security here, maybe a combination of public and private,” said John Dongoin, a parking customer.
Citizens for a Greater Downtown St. Louis released the following statement:
For years, we’ve struggled with 3 a.m. venues that have typically been a source of clutter and quality of life issues in our neighborhood. Acts of violence by patrons of any establishment will not be tolerated. The latest incident involving Club Europe patrons is just another example of the problems caused by nightclubs.
“No one has found a solution yet, so let’s work together and unite the city,” Baker said. “Stop dividing yourselves and find a way forward.”
