March 23 (UPI) — Colorado authorities on Tuesday identified the suspected gunman and 10 victims who they say he killed in a premeditated attack Monday at a grocery store in Boulder.
In an update Tuesday morning, officials gave new details of the mass shooting. Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold read the names of the 10 victims who were killed inside the King Soopers market.
Boulder Police Officer Eric Talley, an 11-year member of the force, was among the dead. Besides Talley, the victims were identified as:
- Denny Strong, 20
- Neven Stanisic, 23
- Rikki Olds, 25
- Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
- Teri Leiker, 51
- Suzanne Fountain, 59
- Kevin Mahoney, 61
- Lynn Murray, 62
- Jodi Waters, 65
Herold said the suspect, 21-year old Ahmad Alissa, has been charged with 10 counts of murder in the first degree.
Officials said Alissa was wounded during the attack and is still in the hospital, in stable condition. Herold described his injury as a through-and through leg wound. Authorities have not yet released any information about a possible motive for the attack.
Local and federal authorities are working on the investigation.
“Our objective … is to conduct a thorough investigation, which includes identifying the subject’s motives,” FBI special agent Michael Schneider said.
“A man with a gun monstrously struck them down,” Boulder Mayor Sam Weaver said at Tuesday’s briefing. “They had family and friends, loves, passions and dreams of tomorrows that will no longer come.
“We feel these losses in our bones.”
“Families are grieving today,” added Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Colo. “They woke up without their loved ones.
“This cannot be our new normal. We should be able to feel safe in our grocery stores … we need to see a change. We have lost far too many lives.”
The White House said late Monday that President Joe Biden is monitoring the developments in Boulder.
“The president has been briefed on the shooting in Colorado and he will be kept up to date by his team as there are additional developments,” press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted.
Biden ordered all flags at the White House to be lowered to half-staff to honor the victims.
“It’s absolutely baffling,” Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters at the White House Tuesday. “It’s 10 people going about their day living their lives, not bothering anybody. A police officer who is performing his duties, and with great courage and heroism.”
Boulder is home to the University of Colorado, located about 30 miles northwest of downtown Denver. Monday, the school’s men’s basketball team played in the NCAA tournament in Indianapolis.
“We are shocked and saddened by the shooting that has rocked the Boulder community this afternoon, and our hearts go out to those impacted,” the university tweeted.
Authorities said they intend to give another update later Tuesday.
Monday’s is the second high-profile mass shooting in Colorado in less than a decade. Twelve people were shot dead at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., on July 20, 2012, when a gunman opened fire at the premiere of the Batman film The Dark Knight Rises.
Shooter James Holmes, who dressed as the Batman villain the Joker during the attack, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the shooting. Aurora is about 30 miles southeast of Boulder.
Monday’s supermarket shooting is the second major mass shooting in the United States in a week.
A gunman went on a shooting spree last week at three Atlanta-area spa establishments. Police said the shooter in that case, Robert Aaron Long, confessed to the killings.
