A man was fatally shot in the parking lot of a strip club near the Tucson airport, officials said.ย
Around 2 a.m. Sunday, officers responded to the parking lot of Christie's Cabaret, 6608 South Tucson Blvd., to a report of a shooting, the Tucson Police Department said in a news release Monday.ย
Two men got in an argument and threw gang signs in the parking lot, police said. The men started physically fighting and one man, Dimitri Romero, 25, pulled out a gun and shot the Sean Rashad-Odell Howell, 33, police said.ย
More shots were fired from multiple people in the parking lot, police said. no other injuries have been reported.ย
Pima County Sheriff's deputies were nearby and heard several gunshots fired, police said. Deputies saw a vehicle leave the parking lot and attempted to stop the car but the driver did not pull over. Romero eventually crashed the car in the 100 block of West Missouri Street and tried to run away but was arrested by the deputies.ย
When police arrived at the parking lot, they learned a lot of people had left the scene. Howell was dropped off at Banner University Medical Center South with life-threatening injuries, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving.ย
The fight and the shooting appear to have been gang related, police said. Police located the car in which Howell was dropped off at the hospital, but they don't know who was in the car with him.ย
Dimitri was booked into Pima County Jail where he faces first-degree murder charges, police said.
Police continue to investigate the shooting and are asking anyone with more information to call 88-CRIME, an anonymous tip line.ย
