Five victims and two heroes in Colorado Springs LGBTQ club shooting identified by police

Colorado Springs city and police officials have officially identified the five people that were killed in the mass shooting at Club Q, an LGBTQ bar, over the weekend.

The shooting started just before midnight Saturday night and the suspected gunman was subdued by bar patrons and employees moments later. Five people were killed and at least 19 others were injured.

Several news outlets, including CBS News, have already identified some of the victims.

At a news conference Monday afternoon, city and police officials provided several updates on what they learned about the victims and the shooting itself.

The deceased victims were identified according to their preferred names and pronouns by Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez as:

DANIEL ASTON, (he/him)

Aston became a bartender in the last two years. In an interview on Sunday, his mother, Sabrina Aston, said he loved bartending and entertaining.  

"Always smiling, always happy and silly. Everybody liked seeing him because he brought up the room, you know, always made people lift him up," Sabrina Aston said.  

"He liked 80s hair bands and he would get crazy wigs and outfits and he would jump across the stage and he could slide on his knees," she said.

Greg Resha, a Club Q employee of 14 years and friend said Aston also recently finished a major part of his transition.  

"He was so proud, and he was so excited to finally have his body match his emotions," Resha said. "To see that happen to somebody you know and love is one of the best things." 

KELLY LOVING, (she/her)

Loving's family described her as "loving, caring, and sweet." Her friend Natalie Skye Bingham said she facetimed Loving just ten minutes before the shooting.

"She was going to go to the bar, grab a drink, go to the patio, smoke a cigarette and then call me back, and that never happened," Bingham said. "I want justice for her because she didn't deserve that." 

DERRICK RUMP, (he/him)

Rump first came to Club Q as a customer many years ago and felt at home. Later, he became a bartender and was a fixture of what he described as a "safe space" for the Colorado Springs LGBTQ+ community.  

"He was the heart of the place," said Resha. "You would walk in and you would expect to see him. You would expect a big hug from him or a sarcastic remark."

ASHLEY PAUGH, (she/her)

A wife, mother and aunt, Paugh's daughter Ryleigh was her whole world, her family said. She also had many nieces and nephews.

"We're absolutely devastated by the loss of Ashley," her husband and high school sweetheart Kurt Paugh said in a statement on behalf of her family. "She meant everything to this family, and we can't even begin to understand what it will mean to not have her in our lives."

Ashley Paugh loved the outdoors, including hunting, fishing and four-wheeling. 

She worked at Kids Crossing, a nonprofit that helps find loving homes for foster children.

"She would do anything for the kids - traveling all over southeastern Colorado, from Pueblo and Colorado Springs to Fremont County and the Colorado border, working to raise awareness and encourage individuals and families to become foster parents," her family.

RAYMOND GREEN VANCE, (he/him)

A post about the 22-year-old from Atrevida Beer Company said, "we are going to miss him and his bright smile so much."  

His family, in a statement, said "he is very supportive of the LGBTQ community," and was at the club with his longtime girlfriend, her parents and their friends to celebrate a birthday.

"Raymond was a kind, selfless young adult with his entire life ahead of him," his family said. "His absence will leave irreparable heartbreak in countless lives."

Vasquez also identified two of the heroes that subdued the shooter: Thomas James and Richard Fierro.

RELATED: Richard Fierro credited as a hero in Club Q shooting

Mayor John Suthers said, of Fierro, he'd never encountered someone so heroic and so humble. CBS News Colorado identified Fierro as one of the heroes earlier Monday. He's a U.S. Army Veteran who was stationed at Fort Carson.

The suspected shooter, Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, has been arrested and is still in custody in a hospital. Once he's released, he'll make a first appearance in court, remotely. He's being held without bond, according to 4th Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen.

He faces at least 10 charges in the deadly shooting, including five charges of first-degree murder and five charges of bias-motivated crime, although charges have not yet been formally filed.

Allen went on to say that no one at the news conference was in a position to respond to a reporter's question about red flag laws regarding a previous case against the suspected shooter, which has since been dropped and sealed.

Questions have surfaced about a 2021 incident in which someone with the same name and age as the suspect in the Club Q shooting was arrested following a bomb threat. That case was dropped and sealed and, per Colorado law, judicial officials can't comment on that case, Allen said.

Officials at the news conference declined to say whether the suspect has been cooperating with law enforcement, as well as if law enforcement had been monitoring the suspect prior to the shooting.

A Colorado Springs police spokeswoman said they would not provide updates on the condition of the injured victims out of respect to their privacy.

Patrick Sharp, CEO of Centura Penrose hospital, said they have three patients in their care, who are all in stable condition.

A city spokeswoman said that anyone that was a victim of the shooting who has not yet spoken to law enforcement is encouraged to call 1-800-CALL-FBI.