Tucson Shooter Had Multiple LGBTQ+ Friendly Addresses Written Down.

A shooting inside a Tucson gay bar that killed three people is being treated as a hate incident, according to an Instagram message posted by Mayor Regina Romero on Monday afternoon. 

The bar, Venture-N, is in Tucson’s midtown and has long been an established bar for the leather community, but has evolved to become a gathering place for the city’s older queer community. 

On Monday afternoon, remnants of the crime scene were still apparent in the bar’s parking lot, with a Mercedes SUV with a bullet hole still parked out front. 

The victims have not yet been identified. 

“Tucson Police Department Investigators confirmed that the suspect possessed addresses for multiple LGBTQ+ friendly venues, intending to cause more harm. TPD is treating this entirely as a hate crime,” she wrote online. 

Police were called to the scene just before 12:30 a.m. Monday morning, according to dashboard data first reported by Tucson.com.

In a statement to LOOKOUT, UCLA’s Williams Institute said that: "LGBT people are five times more likely than non-LGBT people to be victims of violent crime and nine times more likely to be victims of violent hate crimes."

Police said the suspect, 44-year-old Ousman Ceesay, was carrying a list of LGBTQ+ businesses, according to reporting by AZFamily.

Investigators believe Ceesay went to Venture-N Bar near Sixth Avenue and Speedway Boulevard and got into an argument in the parking lot with 42-year-old Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and 33-year-old Cameron Davis Capara. Police said Ceesay shot both men, killing them at the scene. Ceesay was also shot and later died at a local hospital.

"We recognize this incident may cause fear and pain within our community," Tucson Police Chief Monica Prieto said in a statement. "The Tucson Police Department has dedicated increased police presence around LGBTQIA+ establishments and is coordinating with community organizations to provide support."

Multiple local organizations and groups posted online in support of the victims and patrons. Queer Takeover Tucson, which holds monthly networking events at bars across the city, wrote that, “Bars and queer spaces are more than places to go out. They are places where people find community, belonging, joy, and safety.”

Arizona does not have a standalone hate crime law. Instead, prosecutors can seek a hate crime sentencing enhancement after a person is convicted of a felony if they can prove the crime was motivated by bias. 

The state’s law recognizes sexual orientation as a protected category, but does not explicitly include gender identity, though transgender people may be covered under the broader category of “gender.” 

That means the Tucson investigation could raise questions not only about whether the shooting was motivated by anti-LGBTQ+ bias, but also about what legal consequences would follow if prosecutors ultimately establish that motive.

Updated August 31, 4:20 p.m.