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Man dies after fight outside Hollywood nightclub

An LAPD cruiser sits parked at Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue near the scene of a shooting in January 2015.
An LAPD cruiser sits parked at Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue near the scene of a shooting in January 2015.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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A 29-year-old man died Sunday morning after a fight outside a Hollywood nightclub.

Police responded to calls of a fight at Hollywood and Cahuenga boulevards about 2:30 a.m. just as area clubs were closing, said Officer Aareon Jefferson, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Witnesses told police that after a nightclub closed for the evening and a crowd milled about the sidewalk, two women got into a dispute, according to a statement released by the LAPD.

At some point, two men then chased another man, and the two men repeatedly punched and kicked the man, later identified as Devon Jelkes.

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Jelkes suffered blunt-force trauma and was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

After the beating, the two men fled, police alleged. One man hopped onto a party bus and the other fled on foot.

LAPD officers caught up with the bus and arrested Dietrich Canterberry, 34, on suspicion of murder, according to the police statement.

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Canterberry, a resident of Anaheim, has not been charged by prosecutors and was being held on $2-million bail. It’s unclear if he was being represented by an attorney. Police said they planned to present the case to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office Tuesday.

It’s unclear whether Jelkes and the two suspects knew one another, police said.

The second suspect remained at large and was described as a black man who was wearing dark pants and a white T-shirt. He is approximately 35 years old, stands 5 feet 10 and weighs about 185 pounds.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the LAPD’s West Bureau homicide division at (213) 382-9470.

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Police expect to have a higher call volume Sunday night and Monday as revelers celebrate Halloween.

Deaths at or near Hollywood nightclubs are rare, although in August 2015 a 20-year-old DJ died during a brawl at Cashmere on Hollywood Boulevard.

It was a year ago that L.A. City Councilman Mitch O’Farrell warned that the city would be more aggressive in going after club operators who violate their conditional use permits.

alice.walton@latimes.com

Twitter: @TheCityMaven

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UPDATES:

7:30 p.m.: This article was updated throughout with additional details and with the arrest of a suspect.

This article was originally published at 10:55 a.m.

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