What began as a dispute inside the packed nightclub escalated when multiple gunmen opened fire, unleashing chaos before fleeing into the streets.

Three people are dead, and nine others injured after police say several gunmen opened fire inside a nightclub in Brooklyn early Sunday morning.

Investigators believe a shooter or shooters opened fire with multiple weapons at Taste of the City Lounge in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Crown Heights after "a dispute" just before 3:30 a.m., killing three men, New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters.