() — The suspect in the shooting at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ+ nightclub will appear in court on Tuesday as prosecutors reveal what charges they will pursue in the case.
Anderson Lee Aldrich, who identifies as non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, is accused of entering Club Q clad in body armor and opening fire with an AR-15-style rifle, killing five people and wounding 17 others.
Aldrich was subdued by customers at the club, including an Army veteran, who tackled him and beat him into submission. Many in the club were there for a drag show held to celebrate a drag queen’s birthday.
According to witnesses, Aldrich fired first at people gathered at the club’s bar before spraying bullets across the dance floor during the attack, which came on the eve of an annual day of remembrance for transgender people lost to violence.
Aldrich was detained after the attack and held without bail.
More than a year before the shooting, Aldrich was arrested on allegations of making a bomb threat that led to the evacuation of about 10 homes. Aldrich threatened to harm their own family with a homemade bomb, ammunition and multiple weapons, authorities said at the time. Aldrich was booked into jail on suspicion of felony menacing and kidnapping, but the case was apparently later sealed and it’s unclear what became of the charges. There are no public indications that the case led to a conviction.
Prosecutors are said to be weighing the possibility of charging Aldrich with bias-motivated crimes, though District Attorney Michael Allen has noted that murder charges would already carry the harshest penalty, likely life in prison.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
