A man was shot and killed outside The Lumberyard, a northeast Polk County adult entertainment club, in the early hours of Saturday, Sept. 13.
Deputies with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office responded around 3:41 a.m. to a report of shots fired at 1504 NE 54th Ave. and found a dead man in the parking lot, according to a Saturday news release.
In an afternoon update, authorities said 30-year-old Derico Darrell Lowery of Des Moines was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and felon in possession of a firearm. He is being held at the Polk County Jail.
The case appears to be an isolated incident and there is no ongoing threat to the public, authorities said.
The Lumberyard, a strip club that has operated since the early 2000s, has been the site of previous police reports.
In 2006, 27-year-old Luca Jon Pasa was stabbed to death in the club’s parking lot during a late-night altercation. Erik Gilge, 18, was arrested at the scene and later convicted of voluntary manslaughter. Pasa’s family filed a wrongful death suit against the club’s owners and security staff, alleging negligence, but a jury ruled in favor of the defendants, and the verdict was upheld on appeal.
Four years later, in 2010, deputies investigating a hit-and-run outside the club stopped a suspect who pointed a revolver at an officer before fleeing. That man, later identified as David Alexander Carroll, led law enforcement on a chase through Des Moines, tossing the handgun out of his van before being arrested. Carroll, a convicted felon, was later found guilty in federal court of unlawful possession of a firearm.
In 2017, deputies again responded to The Lumberyard when a fight between patrons in the parking lot ended with a 30-year-old man being stabbed in the arm, KCCI reported. The man was treated, while the person initially detained was released without charges.
More recently, in 2022, the club was named in a federal lawsuit by models who alleged their images were used without permission in online promotions.
This story has been updated to include that an arrest has been made and the identity of the suspect.
Nick El Hajj is a reporter at the Register. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on X at @nick_el_hajj.
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