KANSAS CITY, Mo — Two days after a shooting that happened outside of a Kansas City strip club, police still haven’t made any arrests.
The general manager of Baccala Gentleman’s Club believes his club has been unfairly associated with the shooting and gave FOX4 a look at how he keeps his customers safe.
It was 2:40 a.m. Sunday when KCPD officers, responding to a call at the BP down the street, heard a barrage of bullets coming from outside Baccala.
Because of this violence, neighbors are calling for the club to be closed. But the people who run the place said they do everything they can in a neighborhood where violence is on the rise.
“We are not here for a good time, but we are here for a long time,” said General Manager Frank Wille, whose dad opened the strip club 32 years ago.
Over the years, as Independence Avenue has changed into a somewhat seedy area frequented by prostitutes and drug dealers, the strip club has changed the way it does business.
“We run a real tight ship here,” Wille said. “I have security guards out there six nights a week. I have enough security inside to make people feel secure and safe.”
Patrons are patted down twice, and everyone who comes into the club is tracked and documented.
“And your ID goes into this machine right here that will takes a picture of it and sends it to my DVR,” Wille said of an ID reader at the club’s front door.
The DVR that captures ID information is part of an elaborate camera system that records every inch of the club, inside and out. They’re cameras that caught the shooting early Sunday morning outside of the club where dozens of shots were fired.
“Everybody was just walking to their cars, and next thing you know, mayhem broke loose,” Wille said.
The shots came from a dark-colored car parked across the street, in front of the KCFD station on Independence Avenue. After the shots, the car took off east down Independence Avenue, and four people were left injured.
“People started ducking and running for cover, and unfortunately some people got hit, and that’s a shame,” Wille said. “I mean, I also live in this neighborhood as well, and I want everybody to be safe. I mean, I want my neighbors to feel like we do our job to jeep everybody safe here.”
If you have any information that can help police solve this shooting, call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.
