Outgoing California Assemblyman Randy Voepel, a state legislator since 2016, is the grandfather of the shooting suspect in Colorado Springs.
Previously, Voepel served as the mayor of Santee, California. The mother of Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, who was detained on suspicion of opening fire in an LGBTQ bar in Colorado Springs on Sunday is his daughter, Laura Voepel. At least five individuals were killed and more than twenty-four others were hurt in the incident.
Also read: Where is Club Q, gay nightclub site of mass shooting in Colorado Springs?
Voepel lost his reelection attempt earlier this month. How much Voepel interacted with his grandchild was unknown.
Voepel gained notoriety as a congressman when he equated the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, to the American Revolution.
Who is Randy Voepel?
American politician Randy Greg Voepel represents the 71st district in the California State Assembly. He is a member of the Insurance, Local Government, and Joint Legislative Audit committees as well as the vice-chair of the Veterans Affairs, Aging & Long-Term Care, and Public Employment & Retirement committees.
Voepel was born in Saint Charles, Missouri, on September 21, 1950. Voepel joined the United States Navy in August of 1969. Voepel served on the guided-missile destroyer USS Buchanan during the Vietnam War. Military honours and the Combat Action Ribbon were given to Voepel.
Voepel was elected to the Santee City Council in 1996. Voepel took office as mayor of Santee in 2000 and served in that capacity until 2016.
Voepel decisively won the election on November 8, 2016, and he is now a Republican serving in the California State Assembly for District 71, which includes the majority of inland San Diego County and a portion of Riverside County.
He was replaced in a new district in 2022 alongside Marie Waldron, another state Assemblywoman. Voepel suffered a severe defeat.
Voepel once declared that the Republican Party was too liberal and allied himself with the Tea Party movement. Voepel remarked after the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, “This is Lexington and Concord. First shots fired against tyranny. Tyranny will follow in the aftermath of the Biden swear in on January 20th.”
Voepel and his wife Susan have two children. Anderson Lee Aldrich, one of his grandchildren, has reportedly been named as a suspect in the shooting at the Colorado Springs nightclub. Voepel resides in Santee, California, with his family.
