Gun battle outside nightclub after man 'decapitated' by car

A man has died after being deliberately run down by a car outside the Ministry of Sound nightclub, sparking a gun battle in the street that left one man injured.

The incident was the second nightclub shooting in the capital over the weekend, and comes as police hunt a gunman who opened fire inside a packed nightclub in north London.

The Ministry of Sound gunfight happened just before 5am yesterday.

The man left the club, which was packed with 2,000 revellers, with three friends and was walking along the street when a people carrier drove straight at them.

The man, believed to be in his twenties, was hit by the vehicle before his three friends pulled out guns and started firing shots at the car.

A 29-year-old, believed to have been in the car, suffered gunshot wounds to his shoulder and is in a serious condition in hospital.

Witnesses had reported that the man who was killed was decapitated during the collision.

One witness, who did not want to be named, said that four people left the club and were walking away when a maroon-coloured people carrier drove at them.

He said: "Three jumped out of the way and they only got one of them. The dead man's friends retaliated and started shooting at the people in the car. One of them got shot and was taken to hospital. There were about eight really loud gunshots."

A number of shootings have taken place near the Ministry of Sound nightclub in recent years. The club, owned by James Palumbo, celebrates its eighteenth anniversary next month.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "The man who was pronounced dead at the scene is in his 20s. A second man, 29, is believed to have been shot in the shoulder. He is in a stable condition in hospital."

Detectives are also hunting a gunman who shot a number of people inside a nightclub in Muswell Hill, north London.

Panic broke out at The Hill Club when the man opened fire in the early hours of Saturday.

Three people were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds, while several others were injured in the crush people rushed to the exits.

An accurate picture of the number of casualties is yet to emerge, with some reports saying as many as six people were shot.

The "funky house" night at the club was two hours from ending when the man opened fire at around 2am.

Among those injured was a woman, 27, shot in the hand, a man, 23, shot in the chest and another man, 28, shot in the neck.

The three victims are said to be stable in hospital.

Police urged another man, who left the club after being given first aid for a gunshot wound to the leg, to contact them.

Several other people hurt in the stampede to the exits were also taken to hospital, but their injuries were not said to be serious.

Detective Sergeant Jez Dargan from Operation Trident, which investigates gun crime in the black community, said: "This is a serious incident where one man fired multiple shots in a nightclub.

"The panic from the clubbers after the shots led to even more injuries and I would urge anyone who was in the club and hasn't spoken to police to come forward and help us catch this man."