A 30-year-old Nigerian fashion designer based in the United States, Sheriff Shittu, has been shot dead following an altercation with a drunk patron at a nightclub in Brooklyn, New York.
Shittu was fatally shot during a birthday celebration at the Quilox Restaurant and Lounge in the East Flatbush area in the early hours of February 14, according to local media reports.
Authorities said the incident occurred at about 4:25 a.m. when a suspected gunman, who was being escorted out of the club by security personnel, allegedly opened fire.
Accounts of the incident indicated that the shooting followed a confrontation involving the intoxicated patron, who was said to have caused a disturbance inside the lounge.
According to reports, the suspect had been behaving disorderly and allegedly inappropriately touched some female guests, including Shittu’s girlfriend, leading to a heated exchange.
Shittu had attended the event alongside his younger brother, Fawaz Shittu, to celebrate a friend’s birthday.
Speaking with local media, Fawaz recounted the moment his brother was shot.
“I was screaming his name. I was trying to wake him up,” he said.
He explained that the disagreement began after the patron engaged in unruly behaviour inside the club, before the situation escalated.
News 12 Brooklyn reported on Friday that members of Shittu’s family have called for justice, raising concerns about security procedures at the venue.
“We don’t know how the security did not do the job and search properly before somebody could bring a gun into the club,” Salem Shittu, the deceased’s brother, was quoted as saying.
“He was being kicked out, and he was being escorted out when he did it,” he added.
Police authorities said the suspect fled the scene after the shooting and remains at large.
Shittu was reportedly taken to One Brooklyn Health–Brookdale University Hospital Medical Centre, where he was later pronounced dead.
Family members described him as an aspiring fashion designer who was working to establish himself in the United States before the tragic incident.
Investigations into the shooting are ongoing, while authorities have launched a manhunt for the suspect.