Lyndon Mcleod

Mass Murderer

Lyndon McLeod and the 2021 Denver-Lakewood Shooting Spree

Overview

Lyndon James McLeod was a 47-year-old gunman who carried out a planned series of shootings across Denver and Lakewood, Colorado, on December 27, 2021. During a rampage lasting approximately 50 minutes, McLeod killed five people, wounded another civilian, shot a police officer, attacked multiple businesses and residences, and exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officers. The violence ended when wounded Lakewood Police Agent Ashley Ferris returned fire and fatally shot him. Investigators determined that McLeod had personal or professional connections to four of the five people he killed. Several victims had worked in Denver's tattoo or cannabis industries and had previously encountered McLeod through business relationships. Sarah Steck, the final person murdered, apparently had no personal connection to him and was working at the front desk of a Lakewood hotel when he entered.

Background and Earlier Warning Signs

McLeod had previously worked in Denver's cannabis industry and was involved with a tattoo business known as All Heart Industries, which operated from approximately 2013 to 2015. That business occupied the same location later used by Sol Tribe Tattoo and Piercing. McLeod reportedly developed lasting resentment toward several people associated with his unsuccessful business ventures. In 2012, McLeod pleaded guilty to felony menacing after threatening two men with a firearm at a medical-marijuana warehouse. The case was handled through a deferred sentence, and the charge was eventually dismissed after he completed probation. Police also investigated McLeod in 2020 and again in 2021 after receiving information about concerning behavior, but investigators said the available evidence did not establish probable cause for criminal charges. Using the pen name Roman McClay, McLeod self-published a trilogy of violent science-fiction novels. The books presented a fictionalized version of McLeod as a central character who punished or killed people he believed had betrayed him. Several real people later targeted during the December 2021 attacks were reportedly named or closely represented in his writings. Investigators and journalists later examined the books as evidence that McLeod had spent years developing violent revenge fantasies.

The Attack at Sol Tribe Tattoo and Piercing

The shooting spree began at approximately 5:25 p.m. on December 27, 2021, at Sol Tribe Tattoo and Piercing in the area of West Sixth Avenue and Cherokee Street in Denver. McLeod entered the business carrying a firearm and opened fire on the people inside. He killed shop owner Alicia Cardenas and employee Alyssa Gunn-Maldonado. He also shot Alyssa's husband, Jimmy Maldonado, who survived despite suffering serious wounds near his collarbone, shoulder and lung. Jimmy Maldonado was the only person shot inside Sol Tribe who survived. Cardenas was a respected tattoo artist, muralist, cultural advocate and business owner. She had reopened the location as Sol Tribe after McLeod's former tattoo operation had closed. The attack devastated Denver's tattoo and artistic communities, where Cardenas and Gunn-Maldonado were remembered as talented and compassionate professionals. ...

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Alicia Cardenas 44 yr old Female

Police: Lyndon McLeod Knew 4 Of 5 Victims Killed In Shooting ...