Club Q shooting: 'Heroic' patrons subdued gunman who killed five at Colorado gay nightclub

Colorado Spring Police give an update on the deadly Club Q shooting

Police say a 22-year-old gunman opened fire at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, killing five people and wounding 18 before he was subdued by “heroic” patrons.

Police Chief Adrian Vasquez said two firearms were found at the scene at the Club Q after the late Saturday night shooting.

The El Paso County district attorney said investigators were still determining a motive, and the shooting was being investigated to see if it should be prosecuted as a hate crime.

The gunman, identified as Anderson Lee Aldrich, was taken into custody, police confirmed.In a statement, Club Q termed the shooting a hate attack.

“At least two heroic people” confronted the gunman and stopped the shooting, Vasquez said, adding: “We owe them a great debt of thanks.”

Authorities received a report of a shooting at Club Q at 11.57 pm and responded within minutes, Lieutenant Pamela Castro, of the Colorado Springs Police Department, said earlier.

Joshua Thurman said he was in the club with about two dozen other people and was dancing when the shots began. He initially thought it was part of the music, until he heard another shot and said he saw the flash of a gun muzzle.

Thurman, 34, said he ran with another person to a dressing room where someone already was hiding. They locked the door, turned off the lights and got on the floor but could hear the violence unfolding, including the gunman getting beaten up, he added.

“I could have lost my life — over what? What was the purpose?” he said as tears ran down his cheeks. “We were just enjoying ourselves. We weren’t out harming anyone. We were in our space, our community, our home, enjoying ourselves like everybody else does.”

The violence marks the sixth mass killing this month and comes in a year when the nation was shaken by the deaths of 21 in a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

The shooting brought back memories of the 2016 massacre at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, that killed 49 people.

And it occurred in a state that has experienced several notorious mass killings, including at Columbine High School in 1999, a movie theatre in suburban Denver in 2012 and at a Boulder supermarket last year.

Lt Castro had few details beyond the number of dead and wounded.

She said the suspect was injured but authorities didn’t know how. The FBI was on the scene and assisting.

The latest incident occurred as anti-gay rhetoric by extremists in the US has intensified.

In a statement, Club Q termed the shooting a hate attack.

“Club Q is devastated by the senseless attack on our community,” the club posted on its Facebook page.

It said its prayers were with victims and families, adding: “We thank the quick reactions of heroic customers that subdued the gunman and ended this hate attack.”

Club Q is a gay and lesbian nightclub that features a “Drag Diva Drag Show” on Saturdays, according to its website.

In addition to the drag show, Club Q's Facebook page said planned entertainment included a “punk and alternative show” preceding a birthday dance party, with a Sunday “all ages brunch.”

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