What we know about the Colorado Springs LGBT club shooting

It was supposed to be another night of fun, love and joy at Club Q, a popular LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

For $7 coverage, attendees could party to the tunes of DJ T Beatz, cheer on a Del Lusional drag queen performance, dance with old friends, make new friends, celebrate birthdays and cherish the camaraderie and safety that made Club Q feel like family.

The festivities were to last until 2 am. The following day, a musical drag brunch was scheduled at the club. Transgender Day of Remembrance.

But the warmth that has made Club Q a haven for the LGBTQ community since it opened 20 years ago in this conservative corner of Colorado was cut short Saturday night after a gunman opened fire at the club, killing five people and injuring 18.

And this shocked the community to the core. “It’s the only place we felt safe,” said Samantha Alcock, 25, who was a regular at the club when she lived in Colorado Springs.

A suspect has been arrested in connection with the mass shooting, and authorities are looking into charges of murder and bias against him.

Here’s what we know:

What happened?

Shortly before midnight, a man wearing what witnesses described as body armor and carrying what appeared to be a firearm, including a long-range rifle, entered the Q Club, which was busy with dancing, drink orders, birthday celebrations and fun. .

The suspect started shooting immediately after entering the club, said Adrian Vasquez, chief of the Colorado Springs Police Department. said.

Several witnesses described how the confusion escalated into chaos and fear. Joshua Thurman told reporters that he first heard gunshots on the dance floor, but mistook them for music. According to him, he does not remember anyone screaming for help.

“But then I heard another series of shots, turned to the left and saw a flash from the muzzle,” he said in an interview with NBC News.

Many patrons said they were on the dance floor or at the bar when they realized the club had been attacked. Many went to the courtyard. Others described falling to the floor p hiding behind the bar as the bullets pierced the club. Thurman said he and two others hid in the performers’ dressing room offstage, where they locked the doors, fell to the ground, and turned off the lights.

Authorities said just minutes after the alleged shooter entered the club, two patrons – Richard Fierro and Thomas James – defused him.

Man gesturing with his hand

Richard Fierro gestures Monday as he speaks during a press conference outside his home about his efforts to crack down on a gunman during Saturday’s shooting at the Q Club in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

(Jack Dempsey/Associated Press)

Fierro, a US Army veteran, saw the flash and fell flat on his back. he said in an interview outside his house on Monday. He then went into “combat mode,” he said.

He approached the suspect, whom he described as large, pulled him down by the handle on the back of his body armor, and began to “hunt him”. He ordered someone nearby to move the rifle out of range of the suspect and others to call 911. transgender woman kicked man in the head with their heels.

According to the lieutenant, the first call to 911 came at 11:56 pm. Pamela Castro, Colorado Springs police spokeswoman. The first officer was dispatched within seconds and arrived at midnight. The suspect is 22 years old. Anderson Lee Aldrich “They took me two minutes later,” she said.

At least two firearms were found at the scene, Vasquez. said. Police are investigating who owned the weapons and whether they were legally acquired, authorities said. Vasquez confirmed the suspect used a long rifle during the shooting.

Two men erected a memorial with five photographs of the five victims of the Colorado Springs mass shooting.

Noah Reich (left) and David Maldonado, co-founders of the Los Angeles-based Compassion Class, erected a memorial with photos of the five victims of the weekend mass shooting at a nearby gay nightclub on Tuesday, November 11. October 22, 2022 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

(David Zalubowski/Associated Press)

Who was killed?

Authorities identified five people died in the attack during a press conference on Monday, after family and friends confirmed the death of their loved ones to The Times and other media:

  • Kelly Loving
  • Daniel Aston
  • Ashley Poe
  • Derrick Rump
  • Raymond Green Vance

At least 18 people were injured in the shooting, compared to 25 originally counted. All but one received gunshot wounds.

Ten patients are being treated at UCHealth Memorial Central Hospital, a spokesman said. On Sunday, one person was discharged from the hospital. A spokesman declined to comment on the condition of the patients.

Three other patients are being treated at Penrose Hospital and are in a stable condition, a spokesman said.

What do we know about the suspect?

Aldrich is in the hospital, authorities said. They declined to provide details of his condition or whether he had made any statement to the authorities.

He is the grandson of outgoing California Assemblyman Randy Vopel (R-Santee), an aide to the lawmaker told The Times on Monday. Vopel did not want to comment on The Times, an aide said.

BUT a person with the same name and age as Aldrich was involved in a June 2021 standoff with El Paso County (Colorado) sheriff’s deputies who responded to reports of bomb threat in a house in suburban Colorado Springs. Authorities found no explosives, and the Colorado Springs Gazette reported that prosecutors had not filed any charges against the man. Authorities have not confirmed that they are the same men, citing Colorado state law.

This was reported by the Washington Post. that public records show that Aldrich legally changed his full name when he was a teenager, and that until the age of 15 he was known as Nicholas Brink, who lived in San Antonio.

What are the charges?

Prosecutors have yet to file formal charges for the attack.

But court documents show that Aldrich is being held on five counts of murder and five counts of bias crimes resulting in bodily harm. According to Colorado 4th Judicial District District Attorney Michael Allen, bias crime is a term used in Colorado to refer to hate crimes.

Asked if prosecutors are looking into federal hate crime charges against the suspect, Cole Finegan, U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado, cited an ongoing investigation and said his office is working closely with Allen’s office and other local authorities, but that he cannot give further comments. .

Allen said he expects the arrest warrant and affidavit to be unsealed in the coming days.

A man kneels at a makeshift memorial with flowers

On Monday, a man kneels at a makeshift memorial near the site of a mass shooting at an LGBTQ bar in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

(Jack Dempsey/Associated Press)

Have the authorities identified a motive?

Investigators have not determined a motive for the shooting, Allen said, but the investigation is being assessed for bias and murder charges.

More information is not expected to be released until next week, the Colorado Springs Police Department said. said Tuesday.