HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Two after-hours clubs were busted early Saturday morning in southeast Houston, off the Gulf Freeway.
The Houston Police Department said they’ve arrested around 20 people in connection with illegal activity, ranging from drugs to not having proper permits.
Investigators said all of this unfolded at La Zona Bar & Lounge and Los Corrales South.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire was also on scene and said the raid was a joint effort that he wanted to witness firsthand.
“Witnessing the Houston Police Department in collaboration with state officials to close down illegal bars and all kinds of vice going on right here near our neighborhoods,” Whitmire said.
ABC13 spoke off camera to a worker at a business next door to one of the facilities. They said they’ve had chaotic encounters, including one of the bars with bullet holes through their windows.
Police added that these types of illegal businesses are a nuisance to everyone.
“These facilities, unfortunately, give us a lot of calls for service because it never closes,” HPD Chief Noe Diaz said. “We have legitimate businesses that close at 2 a.m. and then young people making bad decisions come here between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., continuing to drink where no one regulates their consumption of alcohol.
“(Bar patrons) get back on our roads, and it’s dangerous for our community and dangerous for our officers who are actually doing the work out here,” he added.
Whitmire added that he will take the issue to the council and hopes it shows they do everything they can to keep the streets safe.
“Sending a strong message to those that would involve themselves either as customers or the owners of these — no permits, no documentation, and they’re closing them down. That’s the goal, we’re closing them down, send a strong message that we won’t tolerate that,” Whitmire said.
This story comes from our news partner ABC13 Houston.