Police confirmed at least five people were killed and 18 were injured at a shooting at a nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Saturday night.
The suspect, Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, opened fire in the nightclub but was stopped shortly after by two people. Aldrich is currently hospitalized after being injured in the shooting. He had two guns on hand, according to officials.
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Law enforcement was alerted of the shooting at 11:57 p.m. local time Saturday, with police and firefighters arriving at the scene shortly after, according to Colorado Springs Police Lt. Pamela Castro. The first police officer arrived at 12:00 a.m., and the suspect was in custody by 12:02 a.m., according to officials.
The shooting occurred at Club Q, an LGBT nightclub in the city. Officials said the motive for the shooting remains unclear as the investigation continues, so they have not categorized it as a hate crime at this time.
Club Q writes on its website it will be “closed until further notice,” saying it was “devastated by the senseless attack on our community” in a post on its Facebook page early Sunday.
President Joe Biden condemned hate crimes against LGBT people in a statement Sunday, despite the motive being unknown, and also called for action on gun violence.
We must address the public health epidemic of gun violence in all forms. I signed the most significant gun safety law in nearly three decades, but we must do more.
And we must drive out the inequities that contribute to violence against LGBTQI+ people. We cannot tolerate hate.
— President Biden (@POTUS) November 20, 2022
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis called the shooting “horrific, sickening, and devastating” in a statement Sunday.
— Governor Jared Polis (@GovofCO) November 20, 2022
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Officials say seven people were hospitalized after the shooting, with two still being in “critical care” and two others having been released from the hospital.
