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Thomas James: Navy petty officer who helped disarm Colorado nightclub shooter speaks out for first time

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CNN
 — 

Thomas James, one of the two men who helped disarm a shooter during last week’s mass shooting inside Club Q in Colorado Springs, issued his first statement about his role in the attack on Sunday.

“I simply wanted to save the family I found,” James, a US Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class, said in a statement. “If I had my way, I would shield everyone I could from the nonsensical acts of hate in the world, but I am only one person. Thankfully, we are family, and family looks after one another. We came a long way from Stonewall. Bullies aren’t invincible.”

“I want to support everyone who has known the pain and loss that have been all too common these past few years. My thoughts are with those we lost on Nov. 19, and those who are still recovering from their injuries.”

“To the youth I say be brave. Your family is out there. You are loved and valued. So, when you come out of the closet, come out swinging,” he added.

James remains in stable condition at Centura Penrose Hospital, according to an update from the hospital. The hospital said he is focusing on his recovery and will not be conducting media interviews at this time.

The comments represent his first public statement since he and Richard Fierro, an Army veteran, helped take down a shooter firing at patrons at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado on November 19. Five people were killed and at least 19 were wounded in the attack, according to police.

The shooter was tackled to the ground by Fierro, who had been celebrating a birthday at the club with family and friends. Another person, identified by police as James, pushed a rifle out of the shooter’s reach while Fierro struck and subdued the shooter with the other firearm they had, a handgun.

Fierro, who spoke to CNN’s Jim Acosta on Saturday, has expressed his deep appreciation for the community’s support as his family’s brewery reopened the day after Thanksgiving.

“It was a beautiful, beautiful day,” Fierro told CNN’s Jim Acosta Saturday. “I couldn’t thank enough people. I tried to thank everyone that walked through the door.”

“I’m not a hero,” Fierro added. “Everyone else in that room was a hero with us and everybody’s got a hero story to just try and survive.”

Man who beat gunman during mass shooting got a big surprise at his business

Fierro’s daughter’s boyfriend, 22-year-old Raymond Green Vance, has been identified by authorities as among those killed in the shooting. The suspected shooter is being held in custody without bond and faces five preliminary counts of first-degree murder and five counts of a bias-motivated crime – elsewhere called a hate crime – causing bodily injury, according to court documents.

President Joe Biden called Fierro and his wife, Jessica, Tuesday, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said, explaining the president wanted to thank Fierro for his “courageous actions” and “instinct to act” in thwarting the attack and saving lives.

Fierro told CNN Saturday he was “humbled” by the call.

“At the end of the day, I wish everybody could talk to him, and just to have that honor. I’m an old soldier, so for me just to talk to a commander-in-chief is a big deal,” he said.

Biden told reporters Thursday he would again attempt to work with Congress to “get rid of assault weapons.” When asked about the national conversation around firearms, Fierro said he has respect for such weapons from his training as a soldier and wants to see a different mentality regardless of where the gun debate turns next.

“I would just like people to stop having so much anger. It shouldn’t be something this tense. There’s no reason for somebody to go to a dance club or a show or anything and have to worry about being shot,” he said.

For Friday’s reopening of the Atrevida Beer Company in Colorado Springs – of which he and his wife are owners – Fierro said he was most heartened by those in attendance.

“It was more beautiful as a person to see the variance, the difference, the diversity, the inclusion of everyone there. Everybody in the same room just having some joy and enjoying a beer.”

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Details are coming to light about the alleged gunman who killed five people at an LGBTQ nightclub

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CNN
 — 

The suspect in the mass shooting at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado had a tumultuous upbringing in which he was bullied as a teenager and raised for a time by his grandmother, according to an emerging portrait of the alleged gunman pieced together by CNN.

Anderson Lee Aldrich ended up in the care of his grandmother as his mother struggled with a string of arrests and related mental health evaluations, according to court records and an interview with a family member. 

The suspect’s grandmother, who a relative described as his primary caretaker, declined to be interviewed by CNN.

Aldrich’s relationship with his mother appeared volatile last year when she called police on her son and said he threatened to harm her with a homemade bomb and other weapons. 

No charges were filed, and the case has since been sealed, leaving unanswered questions about how Aldrich avoided prosecution in a matter that may ultimately have prohibited him from legally possessing a weapon if convicted.

A little over a year after the bomb threat incident, Aldrich allegedly opened fire at Club Q in Colorado Springs, killing five people and leaving more than a dozen injured. Aldrich, 22, faces five counts of first-degree murder and five counts of a bias-motivated crime causing bodily injury, according to an online docket in the El Paso County Court. The 6’4”, 260-pound suspect had been in the hospital for treatment of undisclosed injuries after he was subdued by club patrons during the attack.

Aldrich was born in May of 2000 under the name Nicholas Brink, and is the son of Laura Voepel and Aaron Brink, who married in 1999. Neither parent could be reached for comment. His father filed for divorce in September 2001 in Orange County, California, citing irreconcilable differences. In his initial petition, he requested legal custody and visitation rights but asked that the court grant full physical custody to Voepel. Voepel stated in a 2007 filing that her son had had no contact with his father.

Aldrich’s father was a mixed martial arts fighter and a porn actor who spent time in federal prison for illegally importing marijuana, according to court documents, interviews, and an entertainment website. 

About a year before Aldrich was born, Brink pleaded guilty in 1999 to a misdemeanor domestic battery charge and received a suspended sentence, according to the San Diego County Superior Court. Federal court records state that the victim in that case was Voepel, who was described as his girlfriend. 

Voepel, the daughter of California Assemblyman Randy Voepel, was granted sole legal and physical custody of her son in 2007. In May of that year, Voepel stated in court records that she was unemployed and engaged with a new baby on the way, in addition to Aldrich, who was six years old at the time.  

In 2009, Aldrich’s mother received three years of probation for convictions of public intoxication and falsely reporting a crime to police. The false report conviction stemmed from a 2008 incident in Murrieta, California in which police responded to a reported home invasion and found Voepel lying on her bed with her hands and legs bound with duct tape. Voepel initially told police a man had put string around her neck, bound her with tape and placed a knife on her chest. She admitted the following day, however, that she had been under the influence of narcotics and fabricated the incident because “she was lonely and wanted attention,” a police report states.

In 2010, Voepel underwent court-ordered mental health treatment in Riverside County, California that stemmed from those cases, according to court records obtained by CNN.

The records show Voepel sought custody of her then-10-year-old son – the age Aldrich would have been at the time. A document filed later noted that Voepel said her son had begun living with her and that she planned to seek medical, welfare and food stamp assistance.

It was unclear during what periods Aldrich lived with his grandmother who, according to public records, maintained residences in the same areas where her daughter and grandson lived in California, Texas and Colorado. 

While in Texas, Aldrich’s mother continued to struggle with the law  and mental health issues. A relative who spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity described Voepel as “sweet” but also as having a “tumultuous life.” 

In 2012, she allegedly used a lighter to start a fire in her room at the Baptist Medical Center in San Antonio, according to a police report. Voepel, who was rescued by a hospital staffer, initially denied setting the fire, but security footage showed that she was the only person in her room when the blaze began, according to the police report. 

A licensed psychologist concluded that she suffered from severe borderline personality disorder and alcohol dependence, among other issues, records show. According to court documents, she was originally charged with arson, but pleaded no contest to a reduced offense of criminal mischief in August 2013. She was sentenced to five years of community supervision. 

Following his mom’s struggles, Aldrich was apparently having troubles of his own with at least some of his peers. In 2015, he was the subject of an online bullying page on a parody website. The site, which resembles Wikipedia, has photos of Aldrich as a teenager and uses offensive slurs to mock his weight and accuse him of engaging in illegal activity. 

The site derided an apparent attempt by Aldrich’s grandmother to raise money for him to travel to Japan with classmates.  A screenshot of a fundraising appeal says “Make a dream come true for a young man who has survived many bad knocks over his young life.” The fundraising goal was not reached, according to the post. 

A history of revisions on the page shows that the bullying posts about him were updated several times over a five-month period in 2015. The page, which was first reported by the Washington Post, is still active. 

Later that same year, just before his 16th birthday, the teen legally changed his name from Nicholas F. Brink to Anderson Lee Aldrich. A reason for the name change, also first reported by The Post, was not given.

Aldrich later moved to Colorado Springs where he lived with his grandmother. His mother lived in a rented room in a house nearby. Last year, Aldrich livestreamed a video from his mother’s Facebook page purportedly showing himself inside that house during a stand-off with police in the wake of the alleged bomb threat.

Leslie Bowman, who owns the home where the standoff took place and where Aldrich’s mother had been renting a room, said she screen recorded the video, which has since been deleted, and provided it to CNN. 

The brief video shows a few seconds of an agitated young man – identified by Bowman as Aldrich – wearing a helmet and some type of body armor, and challenging law enforcement to breach the house where he had holed up. 

He ends the video with what seems like a message to law enforcement outside: “So, uh, go ahead and come on in, boys! Let’s f**king see it!”

The video does not actually show any officers outside the house and it’s not clear whether Aldrich had any weapons. 

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release at the time that Aldrich had threatened to harm his mother “with a homemade bomb, multiple weapons, and ammunition,” and that several nearby homes had been evacuated. 

Aldrich later surrendered to sheriff’s deputies, which was seen in other video footage previously reported by CNN. The sheriff’s office said no explosives were found in the house. 

It is not immediately clear how the bomb threat case was resolved, but the Colorado Springs Gazette reported that the district attorney’s office said no formal charges were pursued in the case. The district attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment from CNN. 

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect the suspect faces charges of first-degree murder and bias-motivated crime.

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Club Q shooting: As grief grips Colorado Springs after a mass shooting at an LGBTQ nightclub, officials are investigating whether it was a bias-motivated crime

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CNN
 — 

The mass shooting inside an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where five people were killed and more than a dozen were injured over the weekend is being investigated as a bias-driven crime as survivors grapple with trauma and grief following the attack.

Club Q, known in the Colorado Springs area as a safe haven for the LGBTQ community, turned into a crime scene late Saturday, when a shooter unleashed gunfire at patrons. Five people were killed and 19 were injured, including 17 people with gunshot wounds, police said.

Officials identified the people who were killed as Daniel Aston, Raymond Green Vance, Kelly Loving, Ashley Paugh and Derrick Rump.

Two people inside the nightclub, Richard Fierro and Thomas James, subdued the attacker before officers arrived just minutes after the shooting started, police said.

Fierro, a former Army major who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, told CNN in an emotional interview Monday the violence and trauma experienced during the shooting was akin to that of a warzone.

“My daughter and wife should have never experienced combat in Colorado Springs. And everybody in that building experienced combat that night, not to their own accord, but because they were forced to,” Fierro said through tears. “It’s a lot for any human.”

Fierro was at the nightclub celebrating a birthday with his wife and daughter. His daughter’s boyfriend, Raymond Green Vance, was also there and was killed.

“I’m not a hero. I’m just a guy that wanted to protect his kids and wife, and I still didn’t get to protect her boyfriend,” Fierro said.

Barrett Hudson was also at the club that night and was shot seven times as he tried to flee the gunfire.

“I took off running to the back and I got shot. I knew I got shot a few times. I fell down. He proceeded to shoot me. I got back up. I made it out of the back of the club,” Hudson told CNN.

After taking his first steps since the shooting Monday, he said he’s in disbelief of having survived.

“Seven bullets missed my spine, missed my liver, missed my colon.” Hudson said. “I got really, really lucky.”

He added, “I did not expect to make it. I damn sure did not expect to walk as soon as I’m walking.”

As many others mourn those who didn’t make it out alive and survivors recover from yet another mass shooting in the US, questions linger on the motivation for the attack.

Authorities identified the suspected shooter as Anderson Lee Aldrich, who remained hospitalized Monday after he was taken down by Fierro and James. Fierro said he hit the suspect with one of his guns while others kicked him in the head.

Aldrich, 22, faces five counts of first-degree murder and five counts of a bias-motivated crime causing bodily injury, according to an online docket in El Paso County courts. Michael Allen, district attorney for El Paso County, home to Colorado Springs, said formal charges have not been filed and the ones on the docket are preliminary and may change.

The docket does not reflect whether Aldrich has retained an attorney. Allen said after Aldrich is moved from a medical facility to jail, he will have an initial appearance by video.

“It’s important that if we have enough evidence to support bias-motivated crimes, to charge that. It’s important for this community,” Allen said during a news conference.

Hate crimes in Colorado are referred to as “bias-motivated” crimes, Allen told CNN Monday.

Saturday’s shooting is one of several high-profile mass shootings that have occurred in Colorado, including the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School. Last year in Colorado Springs, a mass shooting at a birthday party left six dead.

So far this year, the US has seen mass shootings unfold at a rate of nearly two per day, for a total of at least 605, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Both CNN and the archive define a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are killed or wounded excluding the shooter.

As authorities continue their investigation into the shooting, many are focused on grieving the lives lost.

Daniel Aston, 28, was a bar supervisor at Club Q, according to friend and bartender Michael Anderson.

“He was the best supervisor anybody could’ve asked for. He made me want to come into work, and he made me want to be a part of the positive culture we were trying to create there,” Anderson said.

Aston moved to Colorado Springs two years ago to be closer to his mother and father, his parents Jeff and Sabrina Aston told The Denver Post.

At four years old, Aston told his mother he was a boy and a decade later, he came out as transgender, his mother told the newspaper. He thought himself bashful, but that wasn’t the case, she said.

“He had so much more life to give to us, and to all his friends and to himself,” she told the newspaper.

The sister of victim Kelly Loving released a statement Monday, expressing her support for everyone who lost a loved one in the shooting.

“My condolences go out to all the families who lost someone in this tragic event, and to everyone struggling to be accepted in this world. My sister was a good person. She was loving and caring and sweet. Everyone loved her. Kelly was a wonderful person,” Tiffany Loving said in the statement to CNN.

The family of Ashley Pugh said they were absolutely devastated by her loss and that her daughter Ryleigh “was her whole world.”

“She meant everything to this family, and we can’t even begin to understand what it will mean to not have her in our lives,” the family said in a statement.

Pugh worked at the nonprofit Kids Crossing, which aims to help foster children find homes, according to the statement. She was also involved with helping the LGBTQ community find welcoming foster placements.

Derrick Rump was a bartender at Club Q. The venue served as a place where he “found a community of people that he loved really much, and he felt that he could shine there – and he did,” his sister, Julia Kissling, CNN affiliate WFMZ.

“He made a difference in so many people’s lives, and that’s where he wanted to be,” she said.

Tiara Kelley, who performed at the club the night before the shooting, told CNN that Rump and his coworker, Aston, were polar opposites in many ways, but worked well together.

“They were just amazing, and every bar should have a Daniel and a Derrick,” Kelley said.

Raymond Green Vance, 22, had just gotten a job at a Colorado Springs FedEx distribution center and “was thrilled to have received his first paycheck,” his family said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, he never left the club. Raymond was the victim of a man who unleashed terror on innocent people out with family and friends,” the statement read. “His own family and friends are completely devastated by the sudden loss of a son, grandson, brother, nephew, and cousin loved by so many.”

Vances was “a kind, selfless young adult with his entire life ahead of him. His closest friend describes him as gifted, one-of-a-kind, and willing to go out of his way to help anyone,” his family said.

Aldrich has not given a statement to law enforcement, police said.

“I haven’t heard that he has not been cooperative, just simply that he has determined not to speak to investigators,” Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez told CNN Monday.

The suspect had a long gun during the attack and two firearms were found at the scene, Vasquez has said.

Two law enforcement sources told CNN records show Aldrich purchased both weapons brought to the attack, an AR-style rifle and a handgun.

Prior to Saturday’s shooting, the suspect was arrested in June 2021 in connection with a bomb threat that led to a standoff at his mother’s home, according to a news release from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office at the time and his mother’s former landlord.

Two law enforcement sources confirmed the suspect in Saturday’s shooting and the bomb threat were the same person based on his name and date of birth.

Sheriff’s deputies responded to a report by the man’s mother that he was “threatening to cause harm to her with a homemade bomb, multiple weapons, and ammunition,” according to the release. Deputies called the suspect, and he “refused to comply with orders to surrender,” the release said, leading them to evacuate nearby homes.

Several hours after the initial police call, the sheriff’s crisis negotiations unit was able to get Aldrich to leave the house, and he was arrested. Authorities at the time did not find any explosives in the home.

Attempts by CNN to reach Aldrich’s mother for comment were unsuccessful.

The two law enforcement sources who said the suspect purchased the firearms also told CNN his arrest over a bomb threat would not have shown up in background checks because the case was never adjudicated, the charges were dropped, and the records were sealed. It is not clear what led to the sealing of the records, they said.

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Anderson Lee Aldrich: What we know about the suspect in the Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub shooting

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CNN
 — 

The suspect in a shooting at a Colorado LGBTQ nightclub this weekend has been identified as 22-year-old Anderson Lee Aldrich, who police say walked into Club Q in Colorado Springs and immediately opened fire, killing five people and injuring 25 others.

Investigators have yet to determine a motive, Police Chief Adrian Vasquez said Sunday, though they are considering whether the attack was a hate crime. Aldrich has yet to be formally charged.

Here’s what we know about the suspected gunman.

Police received several 911 calls about the shooting beginning at 11:56 p.m., according to police. Officers were dispatched at 11:57 p.m. and an officer arrived at Club Q at midnight. The suspect was detained at 12:02 a.m., police said.

The shooting lasted only minutes because people inside the club were able to subdue the suspect, police said.

“At least two heroic people inside the club confronted and fought with the suspect and were able to stop the suspect,” Vasquez said. “We owe them a great debt of thanks.”

Matthew Haynes, one of the club’s owners, told The New York Times one of the customers “took down the gunman and was assisted by another.”

“He saved dozens and dozens of lives,” Haynes said of the first patron. “Stopped the man cold. Everyone else was running away, and he ran toward him.”

The suspect was taken into police custody and was being treated at a hospital Sunday, police said, adding officers did not shoot at the suspect.

A long rifle was used in the shooting, according to the police chief. Two firearms were recovered at the scene.

The gunman appeared heavily armed and wearing a military-style flak jacket as he arrived at the club, the club’s owners told the Times, citing their review of surveillance footage.

Haynes said the gunman entered with “tremendous firepower,” the Times reported.

Police said Sunday they are investigating the suspect’s history, though they declined to share details.

Aldrich was arrested in June 2021 in connection with a bomb threat which led to a standoff at his mother’s home, according to a news release from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office at the time and his mother’s former landlord. Colorado Springs is in El Paso County.

Two law enforcement sources confirmed the suspect in Saturday’s shooting and the bomb threat were the same person based on his name and date of birth.

Video obtained by CNN shows Aldrich surrendering to law enforcement last year after allegedly making a bomb threat. Footage from the Ring door camera of the owner of the home shows Aldrich exiting the house with his hands up and barefoot, and walking to sheriff’s deputies.

Sheriff’s deputies responded to a report by the man’s mother he was “threatening to cause harm to her with a homemade bomb, multiple weapons, and ammunition,” according to the release. Deputies called the suspect, and he “refused to comply with orders to surrender,” the release said, leading them to evacuate nearby homes.

Several hours after the initial police call, the sheriff’s crisis negotiations unit was able to get Aldrich to leave the house, and he was arrested after walking out the front door. Authorities did not find any explosives in the home.

Leslie Bowman, who owns the house where Aldrich’s mother lived, provided CNN the videos. Bowman said Aldrich’s mother rented a room in the house for a little over a year and Aldrich would come visit his mother there.

Attempts by CNN to reach Aldrich’s mother for comment were unsuccessful.

It is not immediately clear how the bomb threat case was resolved, but the Colorado Springs Gazette reported the district attorney’s office said no formal charges were pursued in the case. The district attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment from CNN.

Aldrich also called the Gazette in an attempt to get an earlier story about the 2021 incident removed from the website, the newspaper reported. “There is absolutely nothing there, the case was dropped, and I’m asking you either remove or update the story,” Aldrich said in a voice message, according to the Gazette.

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Gunman kills 5 in Colorado LGBTQ nightclub before he is stopped by patrons

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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Nov 20 (Reuters) – A gunman opened fire inside an LGBTQ nightspot in Colorado Springs late on Saturday, killing at least five people and injuring 25 others before being stopped by “heroic” clubgoers, police said.

Authorities on Sunday said they were investigating whether the attack was motivated by hate.

Police identified the suspect as Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, and said he used a “long rifle.” He was taken into police custody shortly after the shooting began and was being treated for injuries, according to officials.

The shooting was reminiscent of the 2016 Pulse club massacre, when a gunman killed 49 people at the gay nightclub of that name in Orlando, Florida, before he was fatally shot by police.

It unfolded as LGBTQ communities and allies around the world prepared to mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance on Sunday, an annual observance to honor victims of transphobic violence.

Club Q, a long-established venue in a modest strip mall, was described by many as a safe haven for the LGBTQ community in Colorado’s second-largest city.

One of the victims was identified as Daniel Aston, 28, a transgender man and bartender at the club who also performed in shows as a dancer, according to a Colorado Public Radio interview with his mother, Sabrina Aston.

“He was the happiest he had ever been,” Sabrina Aston said. “He was thriving and having fun and having friends. It’s just unbelievable. He had so much more life to give to us and to all to his friends and to himself.”

Police said the initial phone call about the shooting came in just before midnight, and that the suspect was apprehended within minutes thanks to the quick action of law enforcement and the bravery of at least two patrons who intervened.

The shooter burst in with a rifle, a military-style flak jacket and what appeared to be six magazines of ammunition, the New York Times reported, citing the club owners, who said they did not know the man.

Multiple firearms were found at the venue, including the rifle, Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez told a news conference on Sunday.

One patron, Joshua Thurman, choked up as he told reporters that he was dancing in the club when he first heard gunshots. He sought refuge in a dressing room and locked himself inside with others, praying for his life and thinking about loved ones.

“We heard everything,” Thurman said. “We heard more shots fired. We heard the assailant being beat up by someone that I assumed that tackled him. We heard the police come in. We heard them yelling at him. We heard them saying, ‘Take certain people because they’re critical.'”

[1/7] General view of the Club Q gay nightclub as police respond to a mass shooting in Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S., November 20, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt

Several of the injured were in critical condition and being treated at local hospitals, authorities said.

Club Q called the incident a “hate attack” in a statement on Facebook and thanked the “heroic customers” for subduing the gunman.

VIOLENCE CONDEMNED

Anxiety within many LGBTQ communities in the United States has risen amid a divisive political climate and after a string of threats and violent incidents targeting LGBTQ people and events in recent months.

In a statement condemning the violence, President Joe Biden said Americans must not tolerate hate.

“Places that are supposed to be safe spaces of acceptance and celebration should never be turned into places of terror and violence,” Biden said.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who in 2018 became the first openly gay man in the country to be elected as a governor, called the shooting a “senseless act of evil.”

“I feel that same pit in my stomach that so many of you today do, a feeling sadly all too familiar,” Polis said in a video appearance during a vigil held at a local church.

A spokesperson for the city of Colorado Springs said authorities were aware of a 2021 bomb threat involving an individual with the same name and birth date as the suspect, but have not officially confirmed they are one and the same.

Colorado has a grim history of mass violence, including the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School, a 2012 rampage inside a movie theater in a Denver suburb and a supermarket attack that killed 10 people last year.

Mourners laid flowers outside the club on Sunday as Colorado Springs resident Mark Travis, a former police chaplain, played “Taps” on his bugle.

“We could go in and forget about work and everything else and feel like it was a home,” Travis said of the club.

The shooting, he said, had ripped away that sense of comfort. “It’s akin to, I guess being burglarized or something but much worse. You’re not even safe in your own home.”

Reporting by Kevin Mohatt in Colorado Springs, Keith Coffman in Denver, Maria Caspani in New York and Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; Writing by Maria Caspani and Daniel Trotta;
Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky, Frances Kerry, Lisa Shumaker, Paul Simao and Daniel Wallis

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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5 people are killed in a shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs

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CNN
 — 

Five people were killed Saturday night at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, police announced. Another 18 people were injured in the mass shooting at Club Q.

Authorities received “numerous” 911 calls starting at 11:57 p.m. and responded to the scene, said Colorado Springs Police Lt. Pamela Castro.

“They did locate one individual who we believe to be the suspect inside,” said Castro. “At this point in time, the suspect is being treated, but is in custody.”

Castro did not clarify whether the suspect was included in the count of people who were injured in the shooting.

Police declined to speak about a possible motive. Colorado Springs Fire Capt. Mike Smaldino said 11 ambulances responded to the scene after multiple 911 calls were received.

“We will be here for many, many hours to come,” said Castro, adding that the FBI is on the scene and assisting.

In a statement on social media, Club Q said it was “devastated by the senseless attack on our community” and offered condolences to victims and their families.

“We thank the quick reactions of heroic customers that subdued the gunman and ended this hate attack,” the statement said. Details of how the shooting ended have yet to be released by police, but Castro said “this was not an officer-involved shooting.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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Police: 6 people shot outside nightclub in Northern Liberties

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Police say four women and two men ages 26 to 36 are among the victims.

Sunday, October 30, 2022 3:10PM

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Police say six people were shot outside Trilogy Nightclub in Northern Liberties.

One person is listed in critical condition.

Investigators arrived at the scene along North 6th and Spring Garden Streets at around 3:30 a.m. Sunday.

Police say four women and two men ages 26 to 36 are among the victims.

According to Captain John Walker, the shooting started with an argument inside the nightclub and continued outside.

The fight turned physical and a man pulled out a gun shooting another man that he targeted.

Five other victims were shot in the crossfire.

This is an on-going investigation with the Shooting Investigations Group.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Philadelphia Police Department.

Copyright © 2022 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.



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World

Thailand nightclub fire: 13 people killed as blaze engulfs building

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The fire broke out at around 1 a.m. at the Mountain B nightclub, a one-story building in the Sattahip district of Chonburi province, southeast of Bangkok and about 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of Pattaya City, a popular tourist resort destination, Thai police said.

Police Colonel Wuttipong Somjai told CNN that the fire took place during a live music performance and burn injuries ranged from “mild to serious.”

All those who died were Thai nationals, he confirmed. Rescue officials said one of those dead was a 17-year-old, the youngest fatality identified so far.

Col. Somjai said investigations into the cause of the fire were now underway.

People couldn’t escape

Nattanit Pikulkaew said she was at the nightclub to celebrate her brother’s birthday and was near the front of the stage when a woman ran in shouting that the roof was on fire.

Seconds later, she saw that the speakers on stage were in flames.

“Within no time, the fire had spread to the ceiling,” she told CNN, adding that as members of the audience tried to flee the entrance to the club became jammed.

“I saw people trying to break the glass walls but they were too thick,” she said.

Her brother suffered severe burns and is in a critical condition; his friend died inside the building.

Raphon Namtham, a local musician who regularly performs at the nightclub on Monday evenings, told CNN the venue opened two months ago and had become popular with locals for its live band performances, which took place nightly from 12 a.m. to 1 a.m. “Customers come to drink and dance,” he said.

He was not at the nightclub when the fire broke out but said the front door was the only entry and exit point for customers.

Musicians would enter and exit via the back door, which would be locked during performances, he said.

He added that the nightclub’s ceiling was lined with acoustic panels which were highly inflammable.

Namtham said the band Taew Waew had been performing at the time of the fire and that its replacement singer and keyboardist were among those who had died. He said the drummer was on a ventilator for life support at a nearby hospital.

Photos by a local search operation Rescue Sattahip showed badly charred seats inside the venue.

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World

South Africa nightclub teen victims had methanol in their systems

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Traces of methanol — a colorless and highly toxic liquid — were detected in the bodies of all 21 teenagers who were found dead at a South African nightclub last month, as the investigation into the cause of the mysterious deaths that stunned the community continues.

Government officials and members of the police service and the department of health said at a news conference on Tuesday that while the substance had been detected in the blood samples of all the teens, experts were assessing the levels of methanol recorded to determine whether the amount was “lethal” or “nonlethal.”

Litha Matiwane, the Eastern Cape provincial deputy director for clinical service, said initial tests ruled out alcohol and carbon monoxide poisoning as possible causes of death and that officials were awaiting more conclusive results from a laboratory in Cape Town.

The victims, who were between ages 13 and 17, were found slumped over tables and chairs inside the Enyobeni Tavern in the coastal city of East London on June 26. Initial reports suggested a stampede may have been to blame, though officials later said they believed the victims had inhaled or ingested a toxic substance. No obvious signs of injury were present.

The deaths sparked debate throughout the country over underage drinking at taverns in South Africa’s Black townships, which are plagued by poverty, high unemployment and a lack of basic services in a legacy of apartheid. The legal drinking age in South Africa is 18.

Yonela Dekeda, a spokeswoman for the Eastern Cape health department, told The Washington Post that the initial test results were “not conclusive.”

“There are more tests that are being done to identify exactly what the cause of death was,” she said. “We can’t say at this stage where they got the methanol, whether it was through liquor or something else. That is still unknown.”

Families seek justice after South Africa nightclub deaths

Methanol is often found in fuels, plastics, pesticides, paint and antifreeze. It is poisonous to humans and can cause an array of adverse health effects, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most methanol poisonings occur as a result of drinking beverages contaminated with the substance or from drinking products that contain it, the CDC says, adding that signs and symptoms of exposure, which may result in death, include nausea, dilated pupils, a decreased level of consciousness, and respiratory arrest.

Methanol is sometimes purchased in bulk and added to alcoholic drinks to increase profit, which can cause severe outbreaks of sickness, according to the Methanol Poisoning initiative, launched by Oslo University Hospital and Doctors Without Borders.

One witness told The Post that those suffering inside the venue yelled “I can’t breathe” and “I’m choking” before they dropped to the ground and died around her. Others recalled being “suffocated” by a substance that “smelled like gas.”

Survivor describes nightclub disaster: ‘I can’t breathe’

Dekeda said final results may “take weeks or months” to obtain. Asked whether other possible causes of death were being investigated, she said: “Not at the moment.”

Last week, South African police said the 52-year-old owner of the Enyobeni Tavern had been arrested along with two employees, ages 33 and 34. The owner is expected to appear in court next month, facing charges that include supplying underage people with alcohol, Reuters reported.

A funeral for the 21 teenagers was held on July 6, their coffins laid out side by side, surrounded by candles and yellow and white roses.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered a eulogy, sharing details about their lives, their personalities and their hopes for the future.

“These are the lives we have lost,” he said as he named the victims. “Our nation has lost young people who wanted to become doctors, teachers, policemen and women, lawyers, actors, businesspeople and entrepreneurs.”

In his speech, Ramaphosa said the government would clamp down on those profiting from underage drinking.

“Blame must be laid at the feet of those who are making money off the dreams and lives of the young people of South Africa by breaking the law and selling them alcohol,” he said as he urged law enforcement officials and parents to work together to stop illegal events and other activity. “Today it is somebody else’s child; tomorrow it could be yours.”

Wroughton reported from Cape Town.

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3 arrested in mysterious deaths of 21 teenagers at South African nightclub, police say

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PRETORIA and LONDON — Three people have been arrested in connection with the mysterious deaths of 21 teenagers at a popular nightclub in South Africa, authorities said Wednesday.

According to a statement from the South African Police Service, the 52-year-old owner of the Enyobeni Tavern as well as two employees, aged 33 and 34, were taken into custody over the weekend and on Tuesday afternoon by a team of detectives investigating the incident in Scenery Park, a suburb on the edge of the coastal city of East London in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province. The names of the suspects were not released.

Police said the arrests were made after the Eastern Cape Liquor Board opened a criminal case against the Enyobeni Tavern for allegedly selling alcohol to minors. Investigators subsequently issued fines of 2,000 South African rand (about $118) to the two employees and served a summons to the owner for his immediate arrest and appearance in a court of law, according to police.

The owner is scheduled to appear in East London Magistrate Court on Aug. 19. Each of the employees were given an option to pay the fine; but should they fail to do so, they will be required to appear in the same court on the same day, police said.

Forensic personnel investigate after the deaths of patrons found inside the Enyobeni Tavern, in Scenery Park, outside East London in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa, June 26, 2022.

Reuters, FILE

What caused the deaths of the 21 teens — 12 girls and nine boys — remains unknown. They were found at the Enyobeni Tavern in Scenery Park in the predawn hours of June 26. Seventeen of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene, while four others died when they were hospitalized or being transported to hospitals, according to police.

Police said the victims ranged in age from 13 to 17 — all under South Africa’s legal drinking age of 18.

The local government, the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, held a mass funeral for the victims in East London last week. Thousands of people attended the symbolic service, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who gave the eulogy for the young victims. The bodies were buried in private ceremonies at various cemeteries.

Toxicology reports were still pending as of Wednesday. A stampede has been ruled out because the bodies did not show any serious injuries, according to police.

A view of the coffins during a funeral service held in Scenery Park, East London, South Africa, July 6, 2022.

AP, FILE

Police have declined to comment on possible causes of deaths or the circumstances surrounding the incident, citing the ongoing investigation.

“Just as we said in the beginning, investigation is a process and needs to be treated with extreme care and wisdom so that we can achieve the desired outcomes which all of us will be proud of,” the South African Police Service’s commissioner for Eastern Cape province, Lt. Gen. Nomthetheleli Mene, said in a statement Wednesday. “This is the beginning of the great work we are doing behind the scene.”

The Daily Dispatch, a South African newspaper published in East London, reported that the teens were attending a party at the Enyobeni Tavern to celebrate the end of June school exams. Their bodies were reportedly found strewn across tables, chairs and the dance floor with no visible signs of injuries.

A 22-year-old Scenery Park resident, Sibongile Mtsewu, told ABC News that he was at the Enyobeni Tavern when the deadly incident unfolded. He said he was ordering drinks at the crowded club when suddenly the doors were closed and some type of chemical agent, such as tear gas or pepper spray, was released into the air.

“There was no way out,” Mtsewu told ABC News in a telephone interview earlier this month. “There was no chance to breathe.”

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