Custody extension for suspects of nightclub murder
Magistrates have granted police more time to question two men accused of stabbing a 23-year-old footballer on Boxing Day.
Two men arrested on suspicion of murdering Cody Fisher will remain in custody for an extended time to face further police questioning.
One of the suspects, 22, was detained by West Midlands Police at an address in Birmingham city centre just after midnight, on Wednesday, and the second man, 21, was arrested several hours later in London.
A third man, 22, was also picked up in London at around 3am on Thursday.
Officers suspect the three men stabbed and killed Mr Fisher, 23, at the Crane nightclub in Digbeth, Birmingham, just before midnight on Boxing Day.
Four others have been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and two of those have now been released on bail.
Writing on Twitter, West Midlands Police said officers will be exercising Section 60 powers in Birmingham city centre on Friday night, meaning they can stop and search anyone they suspect of being involved in violence using weapons, without having any reasonable grounds.
They said: “The S60 is in place until 5am tomorrow (31 December) following violence involving weapons over recent days.”
Crane nightclub has had its licence suspended for 28 days following accusations from West Midlands Police that there had been “serious management failings” on the night of Mr Fisher’s death.
In a review meeting on Friday, Birmingham city councillors said they will consider whether to close the club permanently in a full review hearing in the future.
Speaking to the licence holder, councillor Diane Donaldson said: “Such a review is to be held within 28 days of receiving a chief officer of the police’s application. You’ll be notified of the full written decision of the sub-committee, with the reasons, within the time limit.”
Duncan Craig, representing Crane nightclub’s licence holder, Digital Arts Media Ltd, said the company would not oppose a temporary suspension of its licence while the police investigated the “horrific crime”.
He said: “I am aware that they will be asking for a suspension to the licence today and, in the circumstances, I have no instructions to oppose that.
“It won’t be opposed. It seems wholly appropriate that we then have a 28-day period to reflect on what’s happened and to assist West Midlands Police with their inquiries into this horrific crime.”
In documents submitted to the sub-committee by superintendent Sally Simpson, an unnamed sergeant said the club’s security guards asked officers to help them with crowd control after the stabbing, while other “oblivious” staff were “wandering around all over the place” and began cleaning up the crime scene.
“They have started to clean the dancefloor further down from where the deceased was; officers shouted at them to stop,” the sergeant said.
“While officers are doing CPR, you can see people are just wandering around in the scene freely.
“As soon as we had more officers on the scene they were removed and the whole dancefloor was cordoned off and the area was made sterile.
“There were hundreds of small drugs bags and nitrous oxide canisters all over the dancefloor. These include the small and the very large nitrous oxide canisters with balloons.”
