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COLUMBIA, S.C. (BFMG) — Richland County Sheriff (RCSD) Leon Lott shut down La Rumba nightclub Tuesday after a shooting wounded four people, saying the violence followed two years of repeated calls for deputies and complaints from neighbors.
Authorities placed a chain and padlock on the Decker Boulevard business, which was the scene of an early Sunday shooting. Lott said county officials supported the closure.
“I’m all for going out and having a good time, but going out and getting shot is not having a good time,” Lott said during a news conference outside the club.
Lott said deputies had responded to (83) calls at the location over the past two years, including reports of shootings, noise complaints and other disturbances. He did not provide a breakdown of how many calls involved gunfire.
The decision to close the business, he said, reflected an accumulation of problems rather than Sunday’s shooting alone.
“It’s about the community surrounding here who constantly calls about the noise, the problems that are here,” Lott said.
One of the four people wounded remained in serious condition at the time of the news conference, according to Lott. He described that victim’s condition as “touch and go” but declined to provide further medical details.
Lott said the investigation remained active. He declined to discuss the number of shooters or identify possible suspects, but said investigators were working to make arrests.
The sheriff pointed to bullet holes in a door and said gunfire had endangered people inside the business and in the surrounding neighborhood.
“I cannot allow these clubs to stay open where people are getting shot, where people are dying,” he said.
Lott also named four other businesses he said posed public safety concerns: First Class on Broad River Road, Chemistry Lounge on Broad River Road, Club Hush on Decker Boulevard and Vegas Nights on River Drive.
He warned that additional closures could follow. He did not provide incident totals for those businesses during the news conference.
The sheriff called for stronger state laws and county ordinances, arguing that citations alone do little to deter businesses from continuing to operate without required licenses. He said lengthy waits for court proceedings allow some establishments to treat fines as a routine business expense.
Asked whether La Rumba had a business license, Lott said he believed it did. He said its owners had cooperated with authorities, but maintained that recurring problems justified the closure.
One of La Rumba’s owners declined to comment while the investigation continues.
Lott described La Rumba as the second club he had closed recently, following The Jerk Hut. He said that business was reopening under a different name, raising concerns about whether closures would produce lasting changes.
The sheriff said his office would continue pursuing legal options to close establishments associated with repeated violence.
“I have plenty of chain,” Lott said. “I have lots more chains, and we’re going to use them.”
