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Longtime Vail resident Richard Moreau is accused of firing several shots outside and in the Sandbar Sports Grill.

Suspect In Vail Bar Shooting Held Without Bail

'Irate' Man Started Shooting After Being Escorted Out Of Bar

POSTED: 10:44 am MST November 8, 2009
UPDATED: 6:03 pm MST November 9, 2009

A 63-year-old man suspected of killing one person and wounding three others in a shooting at a Colorado bar has been ordered held without bail.

Richard Moreau is accused of firing several shots outside and in the Sandbar Sports Grill in Vail. Police say the longtime resident of the mountain ski resort town was arrested Saturday at the scene on suspicion of first-degree homicide. Moreau was in court Monday, where a judge set his next hearing for Dec. 1.

Authorities say the shooting appeared to be random. Witnesses told police that a man got into an argument in the bar and that the gunfire started when he was escorted out by employees. Gary Bruce Kitching, 70, of Carbondale, was fatally shot.

The other victims, whose names have not been released, are from Vail and they include a 29-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his arm and 25-year-old man who was treated for injuries to his leg and released. A 63-year-old Vail resident was flown to a Denver hospital, authorities said. His condition wasn't released.

Nine calls to 911 were made in three minutes, reporting the shooting to police. The Vail Daily obtained recordings of two of the calls, including the first call for help.

Vail Police Chief Dwight Henninger said that the Colorado Bureau of Investigation was helping investigate the shooting scene. He said the town about 100 miles west of Denver hasn't had any homicides since the early 1980s.

"It's really a shocker for all of us here," Henninger said.

Police don't believe that Moreau knew the people who were shot.

"The initial impression is that it appears to be somewhat random," Henninger said.

The shootings were reported at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

Steve Corr of Gypsum told the Vail Daily newspaper that the man pulled out a gun just as he was out the bar's door.

"I saw a gun, and he fired it off," Corr said. "It looked like he hit at least one. Everybody scattered, pretty much."

Henninger said the suspect returned inside and continued shooting. He said the suspect used a semiautomatic .45-caliber handgun.

Police have had contacts with Moreau over the years, "but nothing like this," Henninger said.

Moreau told the Vail Daily in a 2006 interview that he has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder since 1979 after serving two tours of duty in Vietnam in the late '60s. He said he is a New Hampshire native who moved to Vail in 1970 and skis more than 150 days a year.

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