Gunman left note about hate; recently moved to Tucson, no connection to victims

For Tucson’s LGBTQIA+ community, the fatal shooting outside Venture-N has turned a long-standing neighborhood gathering place into the center of a hate crime investigation and prompted increased police patrols around LGBTQIA+ establishments. Two men, Vincent Anthony Siqueiros, 42, and Cameron Davis Capara, 33, were killed in the bar’s parking lot early Monday. Police say the gunman, Ousman Ceesay, had no apparent relationship with either victim, did not try to enter the bar and left behind evidence showing hostility toward the LGBTQIA+ community.

The shooting happened at about 12:30 a.m. outside Venture-N, a gay bar on North Sixth Avenue that has operated for decades as a safe space for LGBTQIA+ residents. Siqueiros and Capara died at the scene. Ceesay, 44, also shot himself and died later at a hospital. Tucson police said Tuesday that detectives found a note at his home indicating he acted alone and that the attack was targeted and motivated by hatred toward LGBTQIA+ people. He was also carrying a note listing several businesses associated with the LGBTQIA+ community.

Police have not found evidence that Ceesay knew the victims or had any apparent personal connection to Venture-N. Video reviewed by investigators showed he never attempted to go inside the bar. Officers recovered a 9 mm handgun at the scene, and police said all shell casings found there came from that same weapon. Detectives have processed the crime scene, interviewed witnesses and family members, canvassed nearby areas for physical evidence and video, and executed a search warrant at Ceesay’s home. The shell casings are still undergoing forensic examination.

Tucson Police Chief Monica Prieto said the department increased its presence around LGBTQIA+ businesses after the shooting. Officers from the department’s Community Engagement and Outreach Section and Homicide Unit have contacted each establishment named on the suspect’s list. Police are also working with community organizations to provide support. Investigators are asking anyone with information, especially doorbell or security camera footage from near the shooting, to call 911 or submit an anonymous tip through 88-CRIME.

Ceesay appears to have arrived in Tucson only recently, according to police and records reviewed in the investigation. Before moving, he lived in Oklahoma, including in an Oklahoma City apartment beginning last December. A source close to the homicide investigation told the Arizona Daily Star that Ceesay was born in The Gambia, a small West African country south of Senegal. Records show that he married Melody Denise Ceesay in Oklahoma in 2012, about a year after he was issued a Social Security card in the state. His wife’s Facebook page now says she lives in Alaska, and she could not be reached for comment.

Public records also describe years of financial difficulty. In 2018, Ceesay and his wife filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy after reporting more than $76,000 in debt, including unpaid state taxes, medical bills and money owed to lenders and collection agencies. Their listed assets totaled $16,800. Ceesay was identified in the filing as an Uber driver, while his wife worked as a branch manager for a loan agency. In May 2025, a rental company filed an eviction case against both of them, alleging they owed more than $1,000 in rent. Ceesay had no serious criminal record in the United States beyond a 2012 speeding citation in Poteau, Oklahoma, and several small claims cases involving unpaid debts. Records indicate he was registered to vote in Oklahoma as a Democrat and likely became a naturalized citizen through marriage. The Department of Homeland Security said it had no information to provide about him.

At Venture-N, the shooting has shaken a business that owner David Wallis described as generally quiet and largely free of serious trouble. Wallis began working there a few years after it opened in 1991 and bought the bar in 2006 from its original owner, Jim Dondson. The bar, which is frequented mostly by gay men, has four full-time bartenders and one part-time bartender, all of whom have worked there for at least a decade. Venture-N was closed Tuesday while a special cleaning crew worked at the scene, and Wallis said he needed to consult with employees before deciding when to reopen.

Wallis has postponed the bar’s annual Jungle Party, which had been scheduled for Saturday. He was considering opening the doors briefly Wednesday for people attending or leaving a candlelight vigil at 6:30 p.m. in Catalina Park. A memorial outside the bar grew throughout Tuesday as residents left flowers, candles and notes. One woman who had never visited Venture-N and did not know either victim said she came because she considered herself a strong ally. Wallis said Venture-N will reopen eventually, though he was unsure how to manage a possible surge of community support when it does.

Tucson officials and community groups have condemned the killings, gun violence and homophobia. U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva addressed the attack on the House floor Monday, calling it a targeted act of hate and urging common-sense gun safety reforms. She said the shooting showed that hate and violence against LGBTQIA+ people remain present even in communities known for being welcoming. The investigation remains active, and police continue to seek video and other information while Tucson’s LGBTQIA+ community mourns two men killed outside one of its established gathering places.