The mother of the alleged non-binary attacker who shot up a gay night club in Colorado Springs earlier this month has been arrested.
The alleged gunman, who will not be named per Daily Wire policy about not giving notoriety to mass killers, opened fire inside Club Q in Colorado Springs. The club is described online as an “adult-oriented gay and lesbian nightclub hosting theme nights such as karaoke, drag shows & DJs.”
Five people were killed and 17 others were wounded in the shooting.
The suspect’s mother, Laura Voepel, was reportedly arrested in the hours following the shooting after she “was warned multiple times to stop yelling or she would be arrested for disorderly conduct,” court documents said. She allegedly “continued to make unreasonable noise directly next to multiple apartments.”
Police say that she became “combative and physically resisted when they attempted to take her into custody,” Fox 31 Denver reported.
The incident happened approximately three and a half hours after the shooting occurred.
Police said the suspected gunman entered the venue with a long rifle and immediately began shooting. At least two patrons inside the club confronted and stopped the shooter, authorities said.
Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers said “their actions clearly saved lives,” while Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez described them as “heroic.”
The shooter reportedly faces five counts of first-degree murder after deliberation and five counts of a bias-motivated crime that caused bodily injury.
Prosecutors deemed the shooting a hate crime.
The Associated Press reported that the alleged gunman changed his name just before turning 16 after filing a legal petition in Texas, saying he wanted to “protect himself” from a father with a criminal history, including alleged domestic violence against the suspect’s mother.
The suspect’s father was a mixed martial arts fighter and pornography performer with a long criminal history, including convictions for battery against the alleged shooter’s mother, according to The Associated Press.
The father served two and a half years in prison for importing marijuana and later violated his conditions while on supervised release by testing positive for illegal steroids, according to public records obtained by The Associated Press.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office arrested and booked the gunman in June 2021 on two counts of felony menacing and three first-degree kidnapping charges in connection to a bomb threat that led to a standoff at his mother’s home in Colorado Springs.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies responded to a report by the shooter’s mother alleging he was “threatening to cause harm to her with a homemade bomb, multiple weapons, and ammunition.” Authorities did not find any explosives in the home.