March 08--A River Drive strip club that was the site of a fire and two shootings over the past week has been the site of more than 300 incidents in the past two years, according to data obtained by The State.
Richland County deputies were sent to Crush Gentleman's Club 173 times since March 7, 2010. Officers wrote up 348 incident reports at the River Drive strip club in that same time span.
Most recently, deputies and Columbia firefighters responded to the club after a fire started there early Thursday morning. The club sustained about $100,000 in damages in the fire, which is still under investigation.
Wednesday, two men shot at a tow truck driver who was moving a car that was parked there illegally. Reco Maurice Bell, 24, and Antione Demetrius Caughmun, 25, were arrested in that incident and charged with attempted murder and armed robbery.
A woman also had to be hospitalized after she was hit by a bullet passing through a wall at the club March 1. The bullet was fired during a fight in the club's parking lot late that night.
The club has become a nuisance and public safety hazard to the community, said Sheriff Leon Lott. Frightened community members have been calling the department about the club, and it seems to be a "magnet for illegal activity," he said.
"Our hope is that it would not be rebuilt," Lott said Thursday after the club caught fire. "It's to the community and sheriff's department's advantage if it's not rebuilt."
In 2006, when the site was home to Chastity's Gold Club, a club bouncer was shot and killed by a Columbia attorney who then barricaded himself from deputies in his Gregg Park neighborhood home.
Staff Writer Noelle Phillips contributed to this report.
Copyright 2012 - The State, Columbia, S.C.
