ATLANTA — The City of Atlanta is taking legal action in an attempt to shut down a nightclub that was the scene of a fatal shooting on Mother's Day two weeks ago.
In a complaint filed Friday in Fulton County Superior Court, the City is seeking a temporary restraining order against the Elleven45 Lounge at 2110 Peachtree Rd. NW, its owners and the property owner of the club, asking the courts to declare it a public nuisance and prevent alcohol sales on the property "in order to protect the health and safety and welfare of the public."
In its complaint, the City accuses Djibril Dafe and Ahmed Uwhubetine, the co-owners of Sovereign Entertainment, which operates the club, of creating an unsafe environment for the public while "permit (ing) dangerous individuals to enter" the lounge while armed.
"The degree of harm and high number of violent incidents" affecting the public has "resulted in a dire need for the City of Atlanta to act immediately," the complaint states. If it can't shut the club down, the complaint says, the City said the group would "continue to fail to control and regulate activity."
11Alive reached out to both men. Uwhubetine tells us he cut ties with the business seven years ago to pursue other ventures. He plans to write a letter to the city to clear his name. Dafe didn't respond.
In the complaint, the city says the Atlanta Police Department was called to respond to at least 12 calls for service at the property since 2020 for reported "fatal shootings, attempted shootings, stabbings, threats of harm, physical altercations, larceny and disorderly conduct."
In one such incident, the complaint outlines police responding to a call of shots fired in August 2020 in which they arrived to find a man holding an AR-15 rifle in hand and a pistol in his pocket. Surveillance video showed that man moving in and out of traffic while holding the rifle, the complaint details. The man told police he was "just protecting himself" after hearing gunfire nearby.
In a February 2021 incident, two women reported being stabbed by another woman. Months later, in August, police responded to another stabbing. The complaint details other incidents, such as a stolen cellphone, multiple fights -- including some in which officers providing security for the club were hit -- and multiple shootings.
The City cited the most recent incident on May 12, in which two people were killed and four others hurt. Atlanta police say an argument inside the club escalated to the point a lone gunman opened fire in a "targeted" shooting, killing 21-year-old Mari Creighton and 20-year-old Nakyris M. Ridley.
Family of Creighton, a rising senior and volleyball player at Albany State University, previously told 11Alive that the club "dropped the ball" in trying to keep the student and other club-goers safe by allowing someone armed to slip through security.
"Everybody dropped the ball that night. Nobody should’ve been in the club with a gun," Tiffany Eason, Creighton's oldest sister, said.
More than disappointed, she said the family is looking for accountability. They announced plans to file a separate lawsuit to get the club shut down, calling Creighton's death "preventable."
"This senseless tragedy should have never happened," a statement from the family's attorney read. "This act of negligence stole the life of an exceptional young woman."
The City agreed in its complaint, saying the club "failed to provide for adequate security and safeguards" to protect patrons and those around the area.
Brenda Messick said she's lived in the area for almost three years, and she agreed that the lounge has garnered quite a reputation in the neighborhoods surrounding it.
"I work right across the street," Messick said. "So, I'm constantly going by there. And, kind of, the joke among, you know, my coworkers is that we drive quickly past it in case there's a stray bullet."
Messick said Elleven45 has been a nuisance, as described in the complaint.
"There just seems to be a lot more chaos when the club's open," Messick said.
Duylan Ward said he's lived in the area for more than two years. He's also partied at the lounge a few times, and while it was fun, he was still on edge.
"There (are) some times --here and there-- where side-eyes from other people, like suspicious activity has gone on while there," Ward said.
It's enough to keep him away.
"Ever since I heard of that, I've kept my distance from there. I don't want to be in it," Ward said.
Thirteen-thousand people have now signed a petition that's been live for four years to shut Elleven45 down for good.
"I think it's a good move," Messick said. "There's a lot of great clubs in the city, right? And that's fine, but this one isn't one of them."
In a previous complaint, Dafe was listed in connection to another business called Encore Hookah & Bar Lounge. In it, there were 171 APD calls in two years. Included was a shooting where a security guard, Ty Ross, was killed. That business closed in 2022.
Ward said he hopes the owners can redeem themselves, but it's going to take a lot of work.
"Tighter on security; before having people check in, pat them down. Do a better job at that because, I feel like it causes an unsafe -- letting some people slide because of connections," Ward continued. "If nothing's being done, I would definitely vote for it. Shut it down."