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ST. CROIX — Following the death of Roy Henry at The Lyme nightclub on Sunday morning, Roger Kainth, the nightspot’s owner and general manager, issued a statement on Sunday afternoon, expressing condolences to the affected families while promising to continue with planned activities.

“Earlier this morning, a very unfortunate incident occurred in the northern parking lot of our establishment. A young man was gunned down by multiple assailants as one of our biggest annual events was going on inside,” Kainth said. “We’ve pride ourselves with running a fun and safe venue for more than 5 years and thank our very capable security team for remaining vigilant to protect the lives of the people who choose to party with us.”

He added: “We thank VIPD for their quick response following the incident. We express condolences to the family and friends of the young man and urge anyone with information to contact police with whatever they know.”

At about 3:30 a.m. this morning, while the all black affair was ongoing, gunshots rang out outside the nightclub situated in the old Nissan dealership building, causing a flock of partygoers, who were in the parking lot when the homicide occurred, to rush inside. A security guard then made his way outside to investigate the matter, and after realizing what had happened, returned to the building and temporarily locked the door in an effort to protect those who were inside.

Kainth went on, applauding his security team while decrying the “few lawless individuals in the community who encroach on the enjoyment of life of others,” and said he plans to “continue investing in top-notch security to create a safe and secure environment inside our establishment.”

On the scene this morning, detectives and police officers were in the cordoned off area, where a sole, bullet-riddled gold Honda Civic was located, with what appeared to be Henry’s blood on the floor near the vehicle.

Kainth said The Lyme will continue to cooperate with the VIPD on the case.