Five dead in Ohio nightclub shooting

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A man walked onstage in a crowded nightclub during a rock concert last night and opened fire, killing at least four people and wounding at two others before he was shot to death by police, authorities said.

One of the dead was Damageplan guitarist Dimebag Darrell, WCMH-TV reported. The guitarist and his brother, drummer Vinnie Paul, were previously with Texan thrash metal band Pantera, which formed in the 1980s.

That band topped the US album charts with its 1994 release "Far Beyond Driven," which also yielded a Grammy nomination. After the band's bitter break-up, the brothers formed Damageplan with singer Pat Lachman and bassist Bob Zilla.

Damageplan's debut album, "New Found Power" -- hailed for its "violent dissonance" by Blender magazine -- hit No. 38 on the US charts earlier this year.

A witness to the shooting, 22-year-old Chris Couch, said he was standing about 30 feet away from the stage when he noticed a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt and hockey jersey walk up to the stage, followed by a bouncer and another club employee.

The man in the jersey climbed onto the stage, started yelling, and shot the guitarist five or six times, Couch said. The gunman also shot a bouncer who pulled him off the musician, he said.

Columbus police spokesman Sergeant Brent Mull said a police officer killed the gunman. Material from Reuters was used in the report.