BOULDER, Colorado — A pharmacist who survived a 2021 mass shooting at a Colorado supermarket told the gunman’s trial Thursday that she heard him say “This is fun” at least three times during the shooting. The chilling detail had not previously been revealed.
Sarah Chen said she heard the comments as she hid with her coworkers, listening intently for sounds from the plexiglass barrier at the pharmacy counter that might alert them to the shooter’s presence after Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa had opened fire in the college town of Boulder.
“I heard him yelling, ‘This is fun. This is fun,’” Chen said.
No one, including Alissa’s attorneys, disputes that he was the shooter. Alissa has pleaded guilty not guilty by reason of insanity when shooting.
Alissa was diagnosed with intractable schizophrenia after the shooting. His lawyers say he had hallucinations, including hearing screaming voices, seeing people who weren’t there and feeling like he was being followed, leading up to the shooting. They argue he should be acquitted because he was unable to tell right from wrong at the time of the shooting.
He is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder, multiple counts of attempted murder and other crimes, including the ban on six large-capacity magazines in Colorado after previous mass shootings.
Testimony began on September 5 and the trial is expected to conclude by the end of this month.
Another pharmacy worker, Maggie Montoya, a professional runner, testified about what she saw and heard while hiding in a room next to the pharmacy. That included hearing Alissa say that he was naked when he surrendered. She did not mention hearing Alissa say, “This is fun.”