SANTEE, Calif. — The gunman accused of going on a shooting rampage at nightclub in Colorado Springs has been identified as the grandson of California assemblyman Randy Voepel.
The republican lawmaker is the former mayor of Santee, and still lives in the East County city.
CBS 8 knocked on Voepel's front door Monday but nobody answered. Business cards from several news organizations were left on his doorstep.
Voepel’s chief of staff did not return messages seeking comment from Voepel, 72.
The grandson, Anderson Lee Aldrich, 22, is accused of killing five people and wounding more than a dozen on Saturday night at Club Q, an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs.
A family member told CBS 8 that Aldrich is the biological grandson of Voepel through the assemblyman’s prior marriage.
Assemblyman Voepel is a republican who has represented District 71 in the East County for the past six years, though he lost the election in November to a fellow republican. His term ends December 5.
Voepel was the mayor of Santee at the time of the Santana High School mass shooting in 2001, where two people died. He spoke at a prayer vigil in Hillcrest just days after the Santana High shooting.
“Right now, Santee is weak. You are strong. We appreciate all the help and all the love and all the caring we've seen,” Voepel said at the vigil on March 8, 2001.
Voepel had a history of voting against gun control laws at the state assembly. For example, he opposed bills to prohibit marketing of firearms to minors, limit manufacturing of ghost guns, and allow individuals to sue firearm manufacturers.
On LGBTQ legislation, Voepel also opposed requiring retailers to have a gender-neutral section, privacy rights for gender-affirming care, and recognizing nonbinary as an official legal gender, according to the Vote Smart political website.
Whether the alleged shooter spent any time with Voepel in San Diego County remains unclear. Public records showed the gunman’s mother had addresses decades ago in Cardiff by the Sea and El Cajon.
WATCH RELATED: Report: Accused Colorado Springs shooter is grandson of California Assemblyman Randy Voepel