James GordonEmployees and some customers fled up the stairs of the store in Boulder, Colorado, to hide in a back room when the suspect entered the business, according to the arrest warrant affidavit. Police received several calls that day that a man had opened fire.
The first calls came in at 2:30 p.m. local time, police said. At 3:28 p.m., it was over.
And what had been a normal day of shopping and working in Colorado City was ruined forever. While some customers and staff got off with a scare, ten people were shot by the lone assailant.
Monday’s victims, including the store manager and police officer, were Danny Stung, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Ricky Olds, 25; Tralona Bartkowiak, 49; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Teri Laker, 51; Boulder police officer Eric Talley, 51; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; Jody Waters, 65.
The suspect, 21-year-old Ahmad al-Aliwi Alyssa, was arrested on the day of the shooting and is charged with 10 counts of premeditated murder. His first court appearance is scheduled for Thursday morning.
In King Supes, pharmacist Maggie Montoya heard the first shot and saw everyone around her scatter, she told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. She hid under the table while the pharmacist pushed a chair against the door. She heard a series of gunshots and screams – then silence, interrupted only by the music of the store and the ringing of the phone.
It seems the shooter was standing at her door when she heard him call the authorities: I give up. I’m naked.
The suspect had removed all his clothes except his shorts and was bleeding from a through-and-through gunshot wound in his leg when he reported to police, the report said.
While the suspect is in custody, Colorado residents and authorities are processing the violence that has struck the community where they felt so safe.
That’s where everyone goes to shop, Jared Polis said. It never occurred to you that this drive to the grocery store could be your last moment on earth.
Questions that remain
The shooting in Boulder, less than a week after eight people were killed in shootings at three Atlanta spas, has sparked fear and confusion.
I promise you that we will all work tirelessly to make sure the killer is held absolutely and fully accountable for what he did, Boulder County Prosecutor Michael Dougherty said Tuesday at a news conference.
The motive for the killing in Boulder – one of several mass shootings in the United States last week – is not immediately known.
There was no evidence of alcohol or drug use, according to the affidavit.
The weapon used in the shooting was a modified AR-15 pistol with a manual magazine, a law enforcement source told CNN on condition of anonymity. A search of the suspect’s apartment found more weapons, the source said.
A photo of the items the man took from the crime scene shows a green tactical vest, a rifle (possibly an AR-15), a semi-automatic pistol, jeans and a dark long-sleeved shirt. There was a lot of blood around the items, according to the affidavit.
The suspect did not respond to officers’ questions about the other suspects, but asked to speak with his mother, according to the affidavit.
Parents, civil servants, and nonprofit employees among those lost
Witnesses said they saw the assailant shoot at police, according to the police report. Officers exchanged shots with Alyssa at the store, said Police Chief Maris Herold.
According to the affidavit, officers wrote that Talley, the first officer on the scene, was injured and had to be brought out by SWAT officers. They reported Talley had a gunshot wound to the head.
Talley, a father of seven children ages 5 to 18, had another job and no desire to join the police force, but he felt a higher calling, Herold said Tuesday.
He cared about this community… and he was willing to die to protect others, she said.
One of the other victims, Ricki Olds, was the store’s receptionist, her uncle, Bob Olds, told CNN.
According to him, she was a strong, independent young woman who had been raised by her grandparents. She was so energetic and charismatic, and she was a bright light in this dark world.
Danny Stong was a wise young man, according to fellow coach Logan Ezra Smith.
He and I are both big supporters of the Second Amendment and we’ll be shooting over the weekend, Smith said. I will miss his smile and laughter, but also his honesty. He put you in your place.
Suzanne Fountain was someone who dedicated her life to real service by helping others, her longtime friend Helen Forster told CNN’s Erin Burnett.
According to Forster, she met Fountain in the late 1980s at a theater performance and then hired her as a staff member at her nonprofit, where she worked for 17 years.
She will be the first person people see when they walk through the door of the non-profit building where we work, and she will take care of everyone. She was calm and reassuring when things were tense, Forster said.
CNN’s Constantine Toropin, Alisha Ebrahimji, Steve Olmasy, Paul P. Murphy, Blake Ellis, Whitney Wilde, Melissa Gray, Keith Allen and Joe Sutton contributed to this report.
James Gordon
