Suspect admits five counts of murder over shooting at LGBT+ nightclub

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

The suspect in a mass shooting that killed five people at an LGBT+ nightclub in the US last year has pleaded guilty to five counts of murder.

Monday’s plea by Anderson Lee Aldrich comes seven months after the shooting and spares victim’s families and survivors a long and potentially painful trial.

The plea entered at a court hearing follows a series of jailhouse phone calls from Aldrich to the Associated Press expressing remorse and an intention to face the consequences for the shooting.

Aldrich faces life in prison on the murder charges under the plea agreement. The agreement also calls for guilty pleas to 46 counts of attempted murder and two counts of bias-motivated crime.

Booking photo of Anderson Lee Aldrich (Colorado Springs Police Department/AP)

Several survivors told the AP about a planned plea agreement after being approached about Aldrich’s comments.

They said prosecutors had notified them that Aldrich, who is non-binary and uses they and them pronouns, will plead guilty to charges that would ensure a sentence of life behind bars.

Aldrich was originally charged with more than 300 state counts, including murder and hate crimes.

The US Justice Department is considering pursuing federal hate crime charges, according to a senior law enforcement source.

The attack at Club Q came over a year after Aldrich was arrested for threatening their grandparents and vowing to become “the next mass killer”, but those charges were ultimately dropped.