The man who killed five people before being shot by police on Monday in Colorado had predicted the murders and named some of his victims in a series of science fiction novels, according to police and US media.
"
We are aware of the books written by the suspect under a pseudonym, which are part of our investigation
," a Denver police spokesperson confirmed to AFP on Thursday (December 30th).
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The shooter, identified as Lyndon McLeod by police, had released a trilogy, "
Sanction,
" between 2018 and 2020 under the name Roman McClay. In photos from his various social media accounts, he wears a long beard and brown hair, as well as tattoos. According to a comment posted on the author's website, the plot follows "
a politician / billionaire who wants to use genetic technology to rewrite the DNA of criminals, such as serial killers or violent people
."
According to American media, in the first volume, a man named Lyndon MacLeod kills a character called Michael Swinyard in a building in Denver. Authorities confirmed that one of the victims had the same name and was killed at the address mentioned in the book. In another volume, the author recounts the murder of a woman, Alicia Cardenas, also identified as one of the victims. The name of the suspect also appeared on administrative documents linked to a premises bought a few years ago by Alicia Cardenas. In a publication on his site, “
Roman McClay
” said to mix fiction and “
people
” and “
real events
” in order to “
blur the line between what exists and what is possible
”.
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On Monday, the 47-year-old shooter first opened fire at a tattoo parlor in Denver, killing a tattoo artist and salon owner Alicia Cardenas.
He then fatally injured Michael Swinyard, then traveled to Lakewood, on the outskirts of Denver, where he killed a man at another tattoo parlor and then a hotel receptionist.
He was shot dead by a policewoman, herself injured in the exchange of gunfire.
The suspect seemed to "
target specific people
" and he had "
personal or professional relations
" with some of his victims, police said on Tuesday.
The receptionist was unrelated to the gunman, but he had had "
interactions
" with the hotel, police said.
Lyndon McLeod had already been the subject of police investigations in 2020 and 2021, but no prosecution had been initiated, said the police who have not yet determined the motive for the attacks.
