D.C. police arrest second suspect in killing at Barcode, a downtown nightclub
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Version 0 of 1. Police on Wednesday arrested a second suspect in connection with the fatal stabbing in January of a 29-year-old patron inside Barcode, a downtown Washington nightclub near the Farragut North Metro station. Devonta Johnson, 27, of Northeast, is being charged with second-degree murder. Police in February had arrested Antoine Byrd, 35, of Northeast, and charged him with first-degree murder. The stabbing occurred about 11:40 p.m. on Jan. 31 inside the club at 17th and L streets NW. The victim was Robinson Pal of Riverdale, in Prince George’s County. He was pronounced dead at a hospital. An arrest affidavit filed in D.C. Superior Court says that Pal and Byrd were seen arguing in the club and that the dispute may have been over the victim accusing Byrd of robbing him. Police said in the affidavit that the stabbing occurred as club security guards were trying to separate the victim and Byrd and at least one of his friends. [D.C. police chief blames Barcode staff in nightclub killing] A witness told police that he saw Byrd holding Pal by the neck. He said he saw another man “flick a knife open and stab the decedent in the upper body.” It was not immediately clear on Thursday what role the latest suspect allegedly had in the killing. The arrest affidavit in Johnson’s case will be unsealed when he makes his initial appearance in D.C. Superior Court later on Thursday. D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier had temporarily ordered the club closed for 96 hours after the attack, saying an unruly crowd interfered with police officers as they tried to investigate the incident. The police chief has that power under an emergency decree. The D.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Board allowed Barcode to reopen Feb. 11 after its owners agreed to revise its security plan and agree to a list of conditions suggested by the attorney general’s office. Lanier, in her letter authorizing the temporary closure, wrote that Pal’s killing “can be connected directly to the operation of Barcode.” She wrote that police found a bloody knife and broken glass strewn across the club floor. In addition to Pal, a second person was also stabbed, though his wounds were described as minor. |