Killer 'was hitman'

Two men were shot dead in front of dozens of nightclubbers in a carefully planned killing, police said today.

The men were gunned down inside a Croydon club - the latest suspected Yardie murders in the capital. A third man was in a serious but stable condition today after the attack at the Spotlight nightclub as revellers left the London Road venue.

The men, who have still to be named by police, died instantly when a gunman opened fire.

The killer then smashed through a set of glass doors and ran into a nearby road. A police source said: "It looks like a fair amount of planning went into these shootings."

The victims, who were both black, were shot repeatedly at about

3.10am on Saturday. There were at least 100 people inside the club at the time of the attack and officers from Operation Trident are today appealing for witnesses.