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

Ousman Ceesay, 44, was living in an Oklahoma City apartment beginning last December, after having lived with his wife in various residences there in the years following their 2012 marriage in that state, a background report showed. A source close to the homicide investigation told the Star that Ceesay was born in The Gambia, a small West African nation south of Senegal.

Tucson police believe Ceesay had only been in Tucson for a short period before the shootings about 12:30 a.m. in the parking lot of the North Sixth Avenue bar called Venture-N, Tucson Police Department spokesman Frank Magos said Tuesday.

The two victims, Vincent Anthony Siqueiros, 42, and Cameron Davis Capara, 33, died at the scene Monday morning. Ceesay, who was carrying a note with several LGBTQIA+ associated businesses written on it, died later at a hospital after also shooting himself. 

Police served a search warrant at Ceesay's home Monday afternoon, where detectives found additional evidence including "a note that further indicated he acted alone and that this shooting was a targeted attack motivated by hate toward the LGBTQIA+ community," police said in a news release Tuesday night. 

"Homicide detectives confirmed there was no apparent connection between the suspect and the victims and that the suspect died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound," the release said.

In the statement, TPD spokesman Officer James Horton said police have processed the crime scene and "interviewed multiple witnesses and family members, canvassed the neighborhood for video and physical evidence, reviewed video evidence, and served a search warrant." 

Video evidence confirmed Ceesay did not try to enter Venture-N, and recovered shell casings are undergoing forensic examination, Horton said. All of the shell casings came from the same weapon, a 9 mm handgun that was recovered at the scene, he said.

Police have increased their presence around LGBTQIA+ establishments, Police Chief Monica Prieto said Monday.

"Members of the Tucson Police Department’s Community Engagement and Outreach Section and the Homicide Unit have made contact with each of the businesses identified on the suspect’s list and continues to work with supporting community organizations to provide support," TPD said.

"Anyone with any information related to this investigation, specifically doorbell camera or security camera footage from near the scene, is urged to contact 9-1-1, or 88-CRIME to remain anonymous."

Financial problems

Ceesay and his wife Melody Denise Ceesay were married in 2012, one year after Ceesay was issued a Social Security card in Oklahoma, a Lexis-Nexis background check showed.

By 2018, Ceesay and his wife had accumulated more than $76,000 in debt, including $3,000 in unpaid state taxes, and obligations to loan or collections agencies and medical facilities, and they filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy that year to discharge the debt, the bankruptcy filing said.

Ceesay's employment at the time was listed as an Uber driver, and his wife worked as a branch manager for a loan agency, the filing said. The couple listed their total assets as $16,800.

Ceesay did not have a serious criminal record in the U.S. other than a 2012 traffic citation for speeding in Poteau, Oklahoma, and several small-claims complaints from loan and credit-management agencies in Oklahoma, seeking outstanding debts.

Ceesay's financial troubles appear to have continued after the bankruptcy filing. In May 2025, a rental company filed a "forcible entry and detainer" — the legal term for an eviction — against both Ceesay and his wife, claiming they owed more than $1,000 in unpaid rent.

Ceesay's wife's Facebook page says she now lives in Alaska. The Star was unable to reach her Tuesday.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security had no information to share on Ceesay. He was registered to vote in Oklahoma, as a Democrat, and likely had become a naturalized citizen through marriage.

'Pretty shook up'

There were people stopping by Venture-N every few minutes on Tuesday morning to add to the growing memorial next to the front door.

One woman, who brought a bouquet of flowers but did not give her name, said she didn’t know either of the men and had never been to the bar before. "But I consider myself a very strong ally," she said, her voice cracking with emotion.

Venture-N remained closed on Tuesday, but owner David Wallis had to be there by 9 a.m. to unlock the door for a special janitorial crew called in to clean up the crime scene.

Wallis said he started working at the bar a couple of years after it opened in 1991, then he bought the place from its original owner, Jim Dondson, in 2006.

The bar business as a whole has seen better days, he said, but his establishment hasn’t changed all that much over the past three decades. It’s always been a fairly quiet, out-of-the-way place that’s rarely seen much trouble.

Wallis said the neighborhood bar frequented mostly by gay men has four full-time bartenders and one part-timer, and all of them have been working there for at least 10 years. He said he needed to consult with them about when they should reopen.

"They’re pretty shook up," Wallis said.

He has already decided to postpone the bar’s biggest event of the year, its long-running Jungle Party, which was scheduled to take place this Saturday. But he was toying with the idea of opening the doors at least for a little while on Wednesday for people headed to or from the candlelight vigil for Capara and Siqueiros at 6:30 p.m. in Catalina Park.

One way or another, Wallis said, Venture-N will reopen at some point. He just isn't sure how the place might handle a big surge in business, should the community decide to show its support by suddenly showing up for drinks.

"I hadn't really thought about that," he said.

Numerous Tucson leaders and community groups spoke out, condemning gun violence and homophobia, after police initially confirmed Monday that the killings were believed to be hate crimes.

U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva, a Tucson Democrat, spoke about the shooting on the House Floor on Monday, saying the "targeted act of hate" should be met with "common-sense gun safety reforms."

"This horrific attack is a painful reminder that even in welcoming communities like Tucson, hate and violence against the LGBTQIA+ community still exist," Grijalva said. "I am sick and tired of Congress refusing to lift a finger to protect our communities while, every day, dozens of people are shot and killed across the country. It does not have to be this way."