Winston County officials crack down on suspects in fatal shooting
"I've had numerous complaints about a lot of alcohol and drug use at the place," Perkins said.
WINSTON COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – The clock is ticking for suspects involved in a Sunday morning shooting at Countryside Club in Winston County.
Sheriff Mike Perkins said this wasn’t the first problem he had dealt with at the club since he took office in January.
“We’ve seen large crowds with no security,” Perkins said. “We have a county ordinance that says they have to have at least $100,000 worth of insurance. They have to be licensed through the county, and there’s supposed to be security, at every event when it’s open.”
The sheriff said along with the violation of that ordinance, Countryside Club was not up to the building code, and there were complaints of gambling and other concerns from the community.
“I’ve had numerous complaints about a lot of alcohol and drug use at the place,” Perkins said.
Perkins said the shooting death of 27-year-old Gabriel Gale was the breaking point to shut the place down as a danger to the public.
“I have the authority to shut the place down. And it has been shut down as of right now, permanently,” Perkins said. “We’ll do that for any other club. If it’s a violation or a threat to the community, it’s going to be shut down.”
Perkins said they are still collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses, but they are closing in on suspects in the shooting.
“We just have to get everything in place to prove what we’re doing. And I feel confident that within a week, we’ll have a person in custody on this case,” Perkins said.
If you have any information on the case, you can call the Winston County Sheriff’s Office at (662)773-5881, or you can leave an anonymous tip on the P3 app.
