KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Four people were shot in the parking lot of a strip center that includes the 9ine Ultra Lounge in east Kansas City, Missouri, early Sunday.
Police were called to the scene on Noland Road near 40 Highway shortly after 2 a.m.
Upon arrival, officers discovered a man in his 40s suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. The victim was transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries. By Sunday afternoon, he was listed in critical, but stable condition.
Three other people had already arrived at area hospitals with gunshot wounds and stated that they were shot at 4800 Noland Road.
One of those three was a female victim in her 20s, who was shot in the leg and is in stable condition, according to police. A male victim in his 30s suffered from an "apparent gunshot wound to the abdomen" and was in critical condition.
The fourth victim, a man in his 20s, was in stable condition.
Police said the shooting appears to have stemmed from an argument that occurred inside 9ine Ulta Lounge and "spilled out into the parking lot where multiple shooters fired rounds at multiple victims."
Alphonso Hodge, a former Kansas City Chiefs player, who owns the nightclub, told 41 Action News everything was fine when he closed the bar at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday and went home. A representative for Baby Face Ray, who performed at the club Saturday night, also said he didn’t notice any issues inside the club and said the rapper was gone when the shooting outside took place.
WATCH: Surveillance footage captures shooting near 9ine Ultra Lounge
Hodge said his surveillance video does not show any shooting take place in front of his nightclub. But the Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said that does not relieve Hodge of responsibility.
“If you’re the only open establishment at 2 a.m. at a shopping center and then to say, ’It’s just some random parking lot someone is shooting up,’ defies every bit of logic,” Lucas said. “The people were there because of the bar, the activity arises because of what was happening in the bar before.”
KC police officers are familiar with the club, as two people died and at least 15 others were injured at the club in a shooting in January.
"That [number of shootings here] tells me there is something going wrong there," Lucas said. "They need to figure that out."
Hodge said that since the shooting in January, he has increased security and surveillance at the club, as well as installed metal detectors inside. IDs are now scanned as people enter the venue.
Jerry White, who owns a motorcycle training school a few doors down from 9ine, agreed with the mayor. On Sunday, he noticed a bullet hole in one of his windows as a result of the early morning shooting.
“Even if the bar was closed, even if he was gone, this was the aftermath of everybody who had been there previously," White said. "Yeah, so I do kind of hold him [Hodge] responsible for it. It’s time to do the right thing and stop. It’s gotta stop.”
The city’s Regulated Industries Division has been trying to put a stop to the bar since January. Jim Ready, the division’s director, said that 9ine failed the probationary period for its liquor license. The business received 90 days to acquire consent forms to retain its license. Ready said because of COVID-19, the city extended that grace period. On Aug. 24, Ready notified Hodge the city planned to schedule a revocation hearing and recommend the board take away Hodge’s liquor license.
Ready said his staff will work on finding a date for the hearing first thing Monday morning.
No arrests have been made in Sunday's shooting, but an investigation is underway.
Anyone with any information is encouraged to call police.
