Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers said the horrific shooting at a LGBTQ nightclub on Saturday could have been much worse if two “heroic individuals” did not subdue the gunman by taking one of his guns and beating him with it.
The shooting at Club Q was over in minutes, which Suthers told CNN was due to the “intervention of at least one, possibly two, very heroic individuals who subdued this guy, appears to have taken his handgun and used it to disable him. Not shoot him, but to hit him with the gun and disable him.”
“But for that — as tragic as this incident is, it’s a horrible crime — it could have been much, much worse,” he added.
Police have identified the suspect as 22-year-old Anderson Lee Aldrich. He used a long rifle in the shooting, and two firearms were found at the scene, police said.
Police Chief Adrian Vasquez also praised the actions of the two patrons who subdued the gunman, saying “we owe them a great debt of thanks.”
Five people were killed and 25 others were injured during the attack. Police said they were investigating whether the attack was a hate crime.
