Club Patron Assaulted Weeks Before Killing

At least one other violent incident happened at a Binghamton after-hours club in the days prior to the fatal shooting of a city man.

The operator of the Orton Avenue club has agreed to shut the place down following the killing of a Binghamton man in the parking lot of the business.

But neighbors have been asking why the club wasn’t closed down before the homicide. City officials have said police were aware of the operation for about three months but they could not do anything about it.

A 35-year-old man who lives near the site said he visited the club a couple of weeks before the shooting. He told WNBF News he was charged ten dollars to get in and five dollars to buy a drink of hard liquor.

The man – who asked that his name not be used – estimated there were about 100 people in the club when he visited. He said shortly after he arrived, about seven men jumped him. He said he sustained facial and dental injuries in the attack.

The man was taken to a hospital for treatment following the assault. He said police interviewed him and took photographs of his injuries but detectives did not contact him.

Even before city officials announced the club would close at the Orton Avenue site, the man said he had been told it would be moving out of Binghamton. He said people familiar with the operation said they expected it would soon start operating in Endicott.

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