Colorado Politics

Denver shooting spree suspect described as ‘strange guy’

The man accused of going on a shooting rampage across Denver and Lakewood on Monday had gun safes insides the walls of his former home, which was raided by law enforcement shortly after he moved out, the home’s current owner said Tuesday.

Gabriel Thorn purchased his home from Lyndon McLeod in 2016 and described McLeod as a “strange guy” who “disappeared off the face of the earth” following the sale.

“There were a few strange things here when we moved in, notably hidden gun safes in the walls and some animal skulls in the garage,” Thorn told The Denver Gazette. “He didn’t disconnect his internet or cable and we couldn’t get in touch with him for any of it. We still get his mail.”

Thorn said the Denver Police Department raided his home about a month after he moved in for a “suspected marijuana grow (McLeod) had been running in this little room in our garage,” he said. 

McLeod owned Flat Black Ink Corp., which he incorporated with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office in June 2005, public records show. A company with the same name published the “masculine fiction” trilogy “Sanction,” written by Roman McClay, according to the books’ Amazon page. The three books were published between 2018 and 2020.

The book’s main character is Lyndon McLeod, who goes on a six-month killing rampage, killing 46 people who had wronged him throughout his life.

When a reporter showed Thorn photos of McClay and a YouTube interview he gave, Thorn identified the author as McLeod.

“Oh yeah,” Thorn wrote, “that’s definitely him.”

Using the alias McClay, McLeod made several appearances on podcasts and YouTube channels to discuss his books.

Roman McClay
Courtesy of Roman McClay
Roman McClay aka Lyndon McLeod
Courtesy of Roman McClay
Mourners gather at a candle-filled memorial for slain artist and activist Alicia Cardenas, the owner of Sol Tribe Custom Tattoo and Body Piercing, who was killed in a shooting spree that left five victims dead the previous night, as on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, at Sol Tribe Custom Tattoo in Denver, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Denver Police chief Paul Pazen speaks about the cross-town shooting spree that left five people dead the previous night during a press conference at the Lakewood Police Department on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Lakewood, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Denver Police chief Paul Pazen speaks about the cross-town shooting spree that left five people dead the previous night during a press conference at the Lakewood Police Department on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Lakewood, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Denver Police chief Paul Pazen speaks about the cross-town shooting spree that left five people dead the previous night during a press conference at the Lakewood Police Department on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Lakewood, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Mourners console one another at a makeshift memorial for slain tattoo shop owner Alicia Cardenas, who was killed in an overnight shooting spree, as seen on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Denver, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
A mourner writes in a notebook at a makeshift memorial for slain tattoo shop owner Alicia Cardenas, who was killed in an overnight shooting spree, as seen on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Denver, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Bullet holes with evidence markers are in the front doors of 1201 Williams Street from a shooting spree the previous night, as seen on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Denver, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Timothy Hurst
Windows are boarded up after being broken in a shooting spree the night before at The Rock Wood Fired Pizza restaurant at South Vance Street and West Alaska Drive on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, in Lakewood, Colo. (Timothy Hurst/The Gazette)
Timothy Hurst
Timothy Hurst
Timothy Hurst

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