Anger as Oceana nightclub is 'rebranded' and stays open after a murder

 
p32 Jamie Sanderson was killed at Oceana in Kingston
Rod Kitson5 August 2013

A nightclub that was ordered to close following a fatal stabbing is to be rebranded by its owners, after it was allowed to continue operating.

Kingston upon Thames council revoked Oceana’s licence after 20-year-old Jamie Sanderson was knifedd to death at the club last October. But the decision was overturned on appeal and now its multi-million-pound owners, Luminar, are planning to relaunch the venue as Pryzm later this year.

Brandon Francis, 19, and Levan Greenfield, 22, were found guilty of the murder at the Old Bailey last month, and were each sentenced to 21 years in jail.

But the company denies the name change is an attempt to distance the club from the murder. Chief executive Peter Marks said: “Obviously, last year’s tragic event meant that we put our plans on hold until the club’s future was determined. We take our social responsibility and the safety of our customers and Kingston residents extremely seriously.

“Oceana has been a successful brand for 11 years, but fashions and trends evolve and the time has come to create a new clubbing experience.”

Police figures showed the nightclub accounted for a quarter of all crime in Kingston between April 2011 and March last year. It will remain open as Oceana until next month when the £1 million refit takes place before the launch of Pryzm in October. As part of the conditions of it being allowed to remain open, the club agreed to cut capacity by 15 per cent, limit the sale of alcohol and introduce ID scanners.

But people living nearby say the measures don’t go far enough. Kingston resident Peter Johnstone said: “A lot of people in the area think it’s just a PR exercise to whitewash over the problem. It causes a lot of problems when it closes each night.”

The leisure firm owns more than 50 nightclubs, and is to rename all 10 of its Oceanas nationwide.

Luminar Leisure Limited at one point owned more than 300 clubs and was worth £800 million, before it went into administration in 2011 and was bought out.

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