4 injured in shooting outside Orlando after-hours club, deputies say
ORLANDO, Fla. - Four people were injured in a shooting that happened in the middle of a parking lot on Orange Blossom Trail in Orange County, two of whom have been identified as suspects.
The shoot-out happened just before 7 a.m. on Monday outside Upstate Hall, which, according to deputies with the Orange County Sheriff's Office, is an after-hours club. Deputies responded to a 911 call reporting the shooting and found two men with gunshot wounds who were rushed to the hospital. Two suspects were arrested and also taken to the hospital.
The strip mall where the business is located was blocked off all day as deputies searched for evidence.
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Investigators said the club was operating illegally. The sheriff’s office said this club has been on their radar for illegally selling alcohol after hours, adding that the business does not have a liquor license.
According to investigators, two deputies visited the business last month and bought alcoholic drinks after 2 a.m., which is the cut-off time in Orange County. Michellee Marie Pizarro Morales, 32, and Jose Nieves Castro, 38, were arrested on Nov. 17 on charges of selling alcoholic beverages without a license. Currently, that crime is a misdemeanor in Florida.
Sheriff John Mina has proposed increasing the consequences for serving alcohol without a license from a misdemeanor to a felony to try to discourage people from running illegal clubs.