5 dead, 18 injured in shooting at LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs
A gunman opened fire at an LGBTQ nightclub just before midnight Saturday, leaving five people dead and 18 injured, police said Sunday.
At least two people at Club Q confronted the shooter, who was using a "long rifle," and prevented him from injuring others, Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez said.
"We owe them a great debt of thanks," said Vasquez, calling those who intervened "heroic.''
A suspect was taken into custody about five minutes after police first received a 911 call, Vasquez said.
The shooting rekindled memories of the 2016 massacre at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, that killed 49 people. Colorado has experienced several mass killings, including at Columbine High School in 1999, a movie theater in suburban Denver in 2012 and at a Boulder supermarket last year attacker opened fire in a gay nightclub late Saturday, killing five people and wounding 18, officials said. The club said the suspect was subdued by patrons.
Police identified the gunman as Anderson Lee Aldrich, who was in custody and being treated for injuries. A man with the same name and age was arrested in 2021 after his mother reported he threatened her with “a homemade bomb, multiple weapons and ammunition,” according to authorities.
Police did not confirm whether it was the same person, saying they were investigating whether the suspect had been arrested before.
