Our first look at alleged Club-Q shooter Anderson Lee Aldrich

Mass shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich appears in two booking photos provided by the Colorado Springs Police Department.

Colorado police have released the booking photo of the man they say opened fire at an LGBTQ+ nightclub over the weekend, killing five people and injuring at least a dozen others.

Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, was arrested for murder and hate crimes. Aldrich opened fire at Club Q, a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, on Saturday night, according to police. Police said they received emergency calls from an active gunman just before midnight; corresponding reportsAldrich reportedly used an AR-15 style rifle.

Reports have since surfaced that Aldrich was subdued by at least two unarmed clubbers: Richard Fierroa U.S. Army veteran and a unknown woman who is believed to have kicked Aldrich in the face after Fierro knocked him to the ground.

Fierro was at the club with his wife, daughter, and his daughter’s boyfriend to celebrate a friend’s birthday and to watch a drag show in which his daughter’s boyfriend was performing.

Fierro’s daughter’s boyfriend Raymond Greene Vance22, was killed in the attack.

The other victims are bartenders Daniel Davis Aston, 28; customer Kelly loving, 40; Bartender and co-owner of the bar Derrick Hull38, and customer Ashley Paugh35

As Law&Crime previously reported, Aldrich was arrested in a 2021 kidnapping case from El Paso County — the county where Colorado Springs is located. according to CNN. Aldrich’s mother, Laura Voepel, said he threatened to harm her with a homemade bomb, multiple guns and ammunition, authorities said. After initially refusing to surrender to authorities, Aldrich was eventually arrested and jailed on two counts of felony threats and three counts of first-degree kidnapping.

Aldrich is allegedly the grandson of the California congressman Randy Voepelaccording to that Los Angeles Times. Voepel, a Republican, had what Politico described as a “mixed voting record” on LGBTQ+ bills. He also praised the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, allegedly calling it the “first shots against tyranny” and likening it to the Revolutionary War.

Aldrich made his first court appearance on Wednesday. Records show he is currently being held without bail in the El Paso County jail.

[Image via Colorado Springs Police Department.]

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