Musician run over in robbery outside Deep Ellum venue

The drummer of a New York-based indie band in town for a concert in Deep Ellum is hospitalized after he was run over by a duo who stole from their tour van, his bandmates said Friday.

Corey Dill, of the band Brother Moses, is expected to survive but is undergoing multiple surgeries at Baylor University Medical Center after he was injured Tuesday, according to a Go Fund Me account set up by his bandmates to help cover medical costs. Doctors said Dill, 28, has a fractured pelvis, broken clavicle and multiple bone fractures in his face, fellow bandmate James Lockhart said. Dill is still being evaluated for internal damage, Lockhart added.

No one had been arrested as of Friday, a Dallas police spokesman said. A detective reached out to the musicians on Thursday, Lockhart said.

“He is in great spirits, all things considered,” Lockhart said. His bandmates have had daily access to him. His wife, who flew from their home in Philadelphia to be by his side, has read comments of support on social media to him.

“We’re really thankful for how well he seems to be taking everything,” Lockhart said.

The incident is the latest in an uptick of violent crime in the popular entertainment district east of downtown. Dallas police Chief Eddie García has vowed to curb the increased violence.

The musicians were scheduled to perform Tuesday night at the Deep Ellum Art Co., at 3200 Commerce St. About 8:30 p.m., a half hour before their set, Dill and guitarist Moses Gomez saw a man they didn’t know exiting the driver’s side of their parked tour van. Dill saw the man had his backpack and laptop, Lockhart said. The band has since discovered about $2,000 worth of music equipment is also gone, Lockhart said.

They also determined that the stranger broke the keyhole on the driver side door to get inside the van, Lockhart said.

Dill and Gomez chased the man who ran to a black or dark gray GMC Sierra in a nearby alley that Dallas police suspect was a getaway vehicle. The driver struck Dill and ran over him as they fled. Dill’s bandmates said the venue owner drove them to the hospital.

Lockhart said the man who broke into the van was white and wore black baggy pants and a red ballcap. They estimate his height was between 5 feet 6 inches and 5 feet 9 inches. Dill and Gomez did not see the driver when they were outside, but Lockhart said security footage from businesses show him outside before the incident. The driver was stocky with dark hair in a buzz cut, Lockhart said. He wore fitted tan clothes and a black mask over his face and nose.

The Sienna had customizations, including distinct deep rims, a large scratch on the top of the roof and a foldable cover over the bed of the truck, Lockhart said.

Police encourage anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers at 214-373-8477. The hotline is answered around the clock.

The band canceled the rest of its 18-city tour. They had eight performances scheduled after the one in Dallas.

Doctors predict Dill could be hospitalized at least a month, Lockhart said. The Deep Ellum Art Co. owners have loaned an apartment to Dill’s family and bandmates, Lockhart said.

“It’s been a real big blessing to us,” Lockhart said.

Lockhart said they’ve heard about the rise in violence in Deep Ellum, where they’ve played before, and they don’t want the businesses to suffer.

Crime in Deep Ellum

Last month, two teenagers were killed and four others, including a 15-year-old girl, were injured in an outdoor shooting near the intersection of North Malcolm X Boulevard and Main Street.

In late August, a man speeding through Deep Ellum in a pickup was arrested on charges that he crashed his truck into a pedestrian, a Dallas police horse and a car while intoxicated. About a week later, a man was fatally stabbed near Main Street and Good Latimer Expressway. The killer fled.

At least two people were shot in Deep Ellum in mid-July when multiple gunmen opened fire near Main and Crowdus streets. Police have not released information on any arrests.

The police chief said the department recorded 10 shootings — one of which was fatal, and two of which were motivated by road rage — during those summer months this year. The other fatality, he said, was the stabbing in August.

García said aggravated assaults in the Deep Ellum area are slightly higher this year than last year, with about 77 reported between May through September in 2021 compared with about 70 during that period last year.

He said Deep Ellum is a focus for police, and some small areas in the neighborhood are part of the newly-determined 51 hotspots that the department has chosen to see increased police visibility as part of the chief’s violent crime reduction plan.