Affidavit: Accused shooter bought gun days before attack at Boulder grocery store
BOULDER, Colo. (KRDO) -- Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa faces more than 10 counts of first-degree murder charges after police say he opened fire at a King Soopers grocery store in Boulder Monday afternoon.
Bodies were left from the parking lot to the inside of the store, tracing the deadly path that Alissa allegedly took while armed with a semi-automatic rifle and clad in body armor, according to a newly released affidavit.
The affidavit says multiple people started calling police when the shooting started around 2:40 p.m. Monday. One caller said they saw the suspect shoot out a vehicle's window; another caller spotted him inside the King Soopers near the refrigerator section; one witness described him: "5'8" tall ... chubby build ... wearing an armored vest."
Multiple witnesses told police they were hiding in the store, according to the affidavit.
We would later find out Monday that 10 people were left dead in the "senseless act of violence," according to police. The Boulder Police Department announced early that it was mourning one of its own lost in the attack, Officer Eric Talley.
(Related: Victims identified after shooting at Boulder grocery store)
According to the affidavit, when officers arrived on scene they saw Officer Talley who was "deceased from a bullet wound." One officer heard the suspect and saw him walking backward toward a SWAT team, when he was taken into custody. That suspect was later identified as Alissa.
Alissa had removed all of his clothing was only dressed in shorts, according to the affidavit. He was pulled to a corner of the building and asked if there were any other suspects, according to the affidavit.
Though he didn't answer any questions, the affidavit says Alissa asked to speak to his mother.
Police took Alissa into custody and found a rifle, a green tactical vest, a semiautomatic handgun, and his clothes.
According to the affidavit, police went to Alissa's reported home and asked family members if they knew about weapons in the house. One family member said Alissa was "playing with a gun [that] looked like a 'machine gun' about two days ago."
Police say they looked through database records and found that Alissa had bought a Ruger AR-556 on March 16, according to the affidavit.
Alissa was taken to the hospital for a "through-and-through" bullet wound during the shooting incident, but District Attorney Michael Dougherty said he would likely be transported to jail later Tuesday.
According to court records, Alissa doesn't have any prior felony record. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of assault from an incident that happened in 2017 and was ordered to attend anger management class.
If you have any information about the shooting, you're encouraged to call the Boulder Police Department at 303-441-3333.
