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Supect In Deadly Stabbing At Portland Strip Club Caught By Police At 7-Eleven Getting Coffee

By Janice Malcolm
Published on: 07:55 PST, Jun 16, 2016

Late Wednesday night a woman who was attacked and viciously stabbed at a Northeast Portland strip club, died as a result of those injuries. The suspected killer is now in police custody, having been caught shortly after the stabbing when she stopped at a 7-Eleven to buy herself a cup of coffee.

The police stated that the stabbing reportedly happened a little before midnight at a strip club in Portland, Oregon, known as Skinn Gentleman’s Club, located on Northeast 60th Avenue in the Cully neighbourhood. Katu advised that the woman who was the victim of the stabbing has not been identified by the authorities, with the intention being to release her name only after the completion of an autopsy by the officials. However, the public was advised that the deceased woman was 29-years-old.

The Portland police said that the suspect in the stabbings is 23-year-old Rinita Linelle Lowe, and Portland police Sergeant Pete Simpson advised that she is currently being held in the Multnomah County Detention Center pending charges related to the murder and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon. According to records obtained from the courts, Lowe has been living in Southeast Portland and in the past has served 5 days in the county jail when she was convicted of prostitution back in 2014.

At approximately 11:36 p.m. on June 15, Lowe attacked and stabbed the other woman. Members of the Portland police were called to the scene with reports of a disturbance and a stabbing, when they arrived it was to find a victim suffering from traumatic injuries. It was reported that despite the efforts of the first responders the woman’s injuries were too extensive and she died at the scene.

Homicide detectives have announced that the victim and the suspect in custody knew each other prior to the stabbing and had been in the middle of a heated argument inside the club just before the suspect attacked outside.

After speaking to a witness, the media was able to learn that the two women, both the suspect and victim, were employed as exotic dancers but worked for competing clubs. It has currently not been made known if either of the two women worked at the Skinn Gentleman’s Club or the reason why they were arguing to begin with.

The 23-year-old suspect was arrested almost immediately after her involvement in the stabbing as she was chased by security guards from the strip club, but seemed to not have been aware of the fact, or thought to hide from, those chasing her as Lowe went inside a nearby 7-Eleven store. The store just happened to be where two Portland Police officers had stopped to get their coffee. The police officers arrested the woman without incident.

The Portland Tribune reported that the county seems to be on track towards a having a relatively safe 2016 in terms of crime rates as this is only the fourth homicide since the year has begun. On average, the city usually reports about 25 homicides per year. However, it is not the first time that this strip club has been the scene of a murder and some have said that police crime scene tape has become a slightly familiar sign outside the club since May 8, 2013, when homicide detectives were called down to the club to investigate a deadly shooting. Police say that incident resulted in the death of Anton Lashawn Hill, 33, who was shot and killed outside the club by Bradley Carl O’Rourke, who later pled guilty to first-degree manslaughter and first-degree assault. The assault charge was included because there was a second gunshot victim.

By 4:40 a.m. on Thursday morning homicide detectives had already moved to take down much of the crime scene tape which had been surrounding the club, as protection for the scene of the stabbing.

The arraignment for the suspect in the stabbing outside of the strip club is scheduled for Friday afternoon.

[Image Via Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office]

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