Jamel Andre Childs, 35, tried to cool tempers down at Taste of the City lounge in Crown Heights before the gunfight erupted, friends say.

The three men killed were Prospect Lefferts Garden resident Marvin St. Louis, 19, Harlem resident Amadou Diallo, 27, and Flatlands resident Jamel Childs, 35, according to police. Officials did not immediately say if they suspected any of the people who were shot had opened fire at the venue.

Around four shooters opened fire at a New York City restaurant early Sunday, resulting in three deaths and eight injuries. According to police, the violence is gang-related.

A fatal Crown Heights shooting prompted New York City mayoral candidates to clash over crime policies as city grapples with recent surge in gun violence incidents.

Investigators believe a shooter or shooters opened fire with multiple weapons at Taste of the City Lounge in the Brooklyn neighbourhood of Crown Heights. Those wounded in the shooting — eight men and three women — are being treated at hospitals for non-life-threatening injuries,