Bloodbath in Brooklyn: 3 Dead, 11 Shot at Late-Night Lounge

Brooklyn woke up to carnage Sunday after a wild shootout inside a crowded lounge left three young men dead and eight others wounded in one of New York City’s deadliest mass shootings this year.

The gunfire erupted just after 3:30 a.m. inside Taste of the City Lounge on Franklin Avenue, a spot known for late-night parties that often run until dawn.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said dozens of bullets flew as chaos broke out. “We believe there were multiple shooters inside the lounge,” Tisch told reporters. “Eleven people were struck by gunfire—eight men and three women. Tragically, three men lost their lives on the scene.”

Authorities identified two of the men killed as 25 and 27 years old. The third man’s age has not yet been released. All three were pronounced dead before paramedics could rush them to the hospital.

A stunned witness described the aftermath to local media: “People were screaming, crawling on the floor. It was like a war zone.”

When officers stormed the club, they discovered nearly three dozen shell casings scattered across the floor—a sign of how many rounds were fired in mere moments.

Outside, police later recovered a firearm near Bedford Avenue and Eastern Parkway. Detectives are working to determine if it was one of the weapons used in the bloodbath.

“This was not one gunman firing off a few shots,” said a veteran NYPD source. “This was a full-scale gunfight in a packed lounge.”

Taste of the City Lounge has been a popular hangout in Crown Heights but has also drawn complaints from neighbors about rowdy crowds and noise spilling into the early morning hours.

“Every weekend it’s the same thing—fights, cars revving, people yelling,” one Franklin Avenue resident said. “But nobody expected this kind of massacre.”

As of Sunday afternoon, no arrests had been made. Detectives are combing through surveillance video and interviewing witnesses, many of whom fled in panic.

Commissioner Tisch urged anyone with information to come forward. “We cannot allow this level of violence to terrorize our communities,” she said.

The shooting comes as New York continues to battle concerns over gun violence, even after overall crime rates dipped earlier this summer. In 2023, the NYPD reported more than 1,200 shootings across the city, a stark reminder that the pandemic-era spike in gun crime has not fully faded.

“This is a tragedy not just for the families, but for Brooklyn,” said City Council member Crystal Hudson, who represents the district. “No one should be afraid to go out on a Saturday night and not come home.”