Denver Cop Takes Down Serial Killer At Mall | The Case of Ashley Ferris
"I wasn't gonna let him win"
THE BLACK PILL
The Black Pill cult, a worldview built on hopelessness, rage, and a deep hatred toward women, starts to spread online.
But one influencer doesn’t just join the cult; he becomes its face.
He isn’t just gaining followers; he is raising an army.
And on December 27th, 2021, he attacks the cities of Denver and Lakewood in Colorado.
But one woman stands in his way. She’s the only one who can stop this cult, and put an end to his reign of terror, before he hurts anyone else ever again.
THE ORIGINS OF THE RED PILL
Incel—short for involuntary celibate—became a buzzword around 2015. It describes men who resent women and blame them for their own romantic and social frustrations. Over time, incel turned into more of a meme or an insult. But alongside that, a new idea started gaining traction — “the red pill”. Going even further than incels, the red pill proposes that society is literally rigged against men.
This worldview sets itself up in contrast to “the blue pill”, the mainstream belief that relationships are built on love, equality, romance, and mutual respect. This concept originated from the movie The Matrix, where taking the red pill meant awakening to a harsh reality. But online, the metaphor mutated into something darker.
Those who have “taken the red pill” claim relationships are actually driven by social status, power, and dominance, and the ideology has contaminated the minds of countless young men since its inception.
Andrew Tate, a central figure in the movement and once the most Googled person in the world, continues to promote red pill content daily—even after facing serious criminal charges in Romania.
FROM RED TO BLACK: A DARKER IDEOLOGY
But even something as disturbing as the red pill can go further. In the shadows of the movement, a far bleaker worldview was quietly evolving. According to it, society is broken beyond repair, men are doomed to loneliness, women are nothing but cruel gatekeepers, power trumps morality, and violence is the only form of expression men have left. These are all ideas promoted by the fatalistic, nihilistic, and radically misogynistic philosophy known as — “the black pill”.
For the blackpilled, hope is an illusion. You, just like the world around you, are broken. And that resentment can only lead to one thing.
But something happened in 2021. The black pill community emerged from the shadows, taking its message to the masses in an attempt to replicate the Andrew Tate phenomenon. Enter self-proclaimed sigma-male, and self-published novelist extraordinaire…
THE MAN BEHIND THE MANIFESTO
Roman quickly became famous—before anyone could realize what he truly stood for. Podcast hosts treated him like a modern philosopher, but few noticed the violent undertone behind his words.
The book Roman is referring to is called Sanction, an over 1.2 million-word science fiction novel, nearly twice as long as the Bible. He writes himself in as the macho self-insert protagonist named Lyndon McLeod, which is Roman’s real name from before his influencer rebrand. He describes his protagonist, Lyndon, killing people he knew in and around Denver, using the real names of people from his own past. When Sanction was released, it received praise from the manosphere community, but disturbed almost everyone else who read it. One Amazon review reads: “This book is packed full of rants on diversity, women, and globalization. There are fantasies of killing people. This book fetishizes violence.” Support and condemnation of the book created an online debate, where Lyndon himself threatened to kill his detractors and their families. For those who agreed with Lyndon and his disturbing outlook on the world, this was gospel. His book was the longest right-wing manifesto ever written. A rallying cry for the disheartened incels—a Black Pill Bible.
ALICIA CARDENAS: BUILDER OF SOL TRIBE
Members of Lyndon's new “black pilled tribe” knew that his so-called "first tribe" were people from his past, and that they were all on the hit list hidden in the pages of Sanction. But one person seemingly held more importance to him than the others: the Indigenous painter, muralist, body piercer, tattoo artist, and Lyndon's ex-girlfriend, Alicia Cardenas.
Ometeotl mitakuye oyasin, Alicia’s motto. A Lakota-Nahuatl mantra meaning—“We’re all connected as one through the universe.” And the 44-year-old lived by it, even though connection wasn’t what she found when she first entered the tattoo world in the early 90s. Back then, the industry was still ruled by biker gangs and ex-convicts. For a young woman of color, it wasn’t just hostile, it was truly dangerous.
Alicia had no interest in joining that scene, so she set out to build something of her own. After delivering pizza and cleaning houses for years, she opened Sol Tribe on Broadway Street in downtown Denver. Her shop wasn’t just about tattoos; she wanted it to become a home for people like her. She hired artists whom other shops had rejected. She mentored teenagers, ran food drives for people experiencing homelessness, and painted murals with messages about healing and tolerance. Her employee and best friend, Jimmy Maldonado, was by her side from the beginning. Together, they built a powerful community and made inclusion their mission. But their message didn’t sit well with everyone.
Jimmy and Alicia poured everything into Sol Tribe, building it into one of Colorado’s most respected tattoo shops. Before long, Broadway Street became a hub for the counterculture, with open-minded tattoo parlors popping up all around. Along the way, Alicia became something of a matriarch to her people, a legend in downtown Denver. She truly had changed the game and was finally living her dream. But in the shadows, someone from her past was watching, waiting for the right moment to destroy it all.
LYNDON'S RETURN
It’s December 27th, 2021, just three days after Christmas. Jimmy’s wife, Alyssa — not to be confused with Alicia — is helping close up Sol Tribe for the night with her husband and Alicia. The couple shares with their boss that they've been trying for a baby recently, heartwarming news to Alicia, who officiated their wedding two years prior. The three are cleaning up and chatting—when someone none of them has seen in nearly 20 years walks through the door.
Back in 1999, Lyndon found his way to Denver after fleeing a cult-like hippie commune known as Zendik Farm. Once in the city, he soon got acquainted with Denver’s up-and-coming tattoo industry and, eventually, walked into Sol Tribe.
Alicia believed in second chances. When she met Lyndon, she saw someone spiritually broken, searching for meaning and belonging. What began as friendship quickly turned romantic, and just as quickly, started to fall apart. Lyndon's charm gave way to cynicism. He started saying things that made her uneasy—offhand jokes that were almost insults and opinions that felt more like warnings. Before things got out of hand, she broke up with him. In 2018, Alicia was interviewed by a fellow feminist influencer. She was asked about a time she felt unsafe in a relationship. She didn’t mention anyone in particular, but the similarities to Lyndon were uncanny.
While Alicia was focused on building a safe space to bring people together, Lyndon vanished into the woods and built a container house in which he could live in complete isolation. There, he spiraled deeper into radicalization. In the echo chamber he created for himself online, he convinced himself that Alicia and everyone who offended him were to blame for everything that had gone wrong in his life. During this time, he wrote his revenge fantasy book, Sanction, in which he explicitly names Alicia and has his self-insert protagonist murder her. However, when Lyndon hinted online that his novel might not stay fictional for much longer, many of his followers backed away. A few even reported him to the FBI for terrorist intent, but no concrete action was taken. So, on that cold December night in 2021, Lyndon walks into Sol Tribe dressed in black leather and body armor. He’s bringing his twisted fantasy to life. He pulls an AR-15 from a bag and, without saying a word, fires on Alicia, Jimmy, and Alyssa.
ASHLEY FERRIS: A RELUCTANT HERO
In the early morning of December 27th, Police Officer Ashley Ferris arrives at her station in Lakewood, seven miles from Denver. She’s running on coffee and very little sleep. She’s been struggling with an ongoing divorce, and the holidays hit hard.
It’s the first Christmas she’s spent alone, and the silence at home has been brutal. Still, she shows up. With half the department out sick, she doesn’t have much of a choice.
Ashley used to crack jokes in the locker room. Always in good spirits, she was the kind of cop who noticed when someone was having a bad day, and honestly asked about it. But nowadays, the only thing that keeps her going seems to be her pets at home.
By lunchtime, Ashley is sitting alone in her cruiser in an empty parking lot, trying to keep it together. Lakewood officers patrol alone, and the isolation doesn’t help. Her thoughts quickly spiral out of control. She’s been in a dark place for months, and today feels worse than usual. She starts crying, but is interrupted by her phone. It’s a text from a friend on the force, asking if he should walk her dog during her shift. She knows this is her last chance to ask for help, but here in her car, all alone and at the end of her rope, she just doesn’t take it.
The rest of the shift goes by. Routine calls, patrols, nothing out of the ordinary. Ashley goes through the motions and agrees to do a double for the sake of the team. It's her last day on earth after all; she may as well make herself useful. Then, just after 5 PM, her radio crackles…
THE RAMPAGE
Ashley does what she can to piece together the events as they happen in real time on her radio. At 5:25, her Denver colleagues find the bodies of Alicia and Alyssa at Sol Tribe and manage to rescue Jimmy before he bleeds out. But unfortunately, Lyndon is already long gone. At 5:31, he bursts into the apartment of his ex-business partner, tattoo artist Jeremy Costilow.
Thankfully, Jeremy, his wife, and their 8-month-old daughter escape in time. But the other people listed throughout the pages of Sanction aren’t as lucky. At 5:45, Lyndon kills a contractor he used to work with, named Michael Swinyard, at his residence. At 5:49, police engage Lyndon’s black van. They don’t know that the attack has been planned. The pursuit ends in a shootout, and the suspect wrecks two police cruisers before fleeing towards Lakewood. Once there, Lyndon continues his vendetta by heading straight to the Lucky 13 tattoo parlor, and, at 5:58, kills another of his past partners out of jealousy, tattoo artist Danny Scofield, right in front of two of his clients.
Lyndon then walks into a restaurant, where he forces his way behind the counter and pours himself a drink.
At 6:04, another gunfight erupts between him and the police. He escapes into a Hyatt Hotel and kills 28-year-old front desk worker Sara Steck, who isn’t listed in Sanction; she simply happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
THE FINAL SHOOTOUT
It’s now 6:10. Ashley finally reaches the area where the last attack happened. Nobody can guess exactly where Lyndon is headed next, but she has her own idea.
Ashley knows that calling out to him is useless at this point; she can see it in his eyes. Instead, she steps back and pulls out her service weapon. Without taking her eyes off of Lyndon, she notices a crowd moving in right behind him. She hesitates for a second, not wanting to hit innocent bystanders, but Lyndon doesn’t care—and opens fire.
Severely concussed and bleeding profusely, Ashley knows her body is about to give out. She has only a few seconds to act. With ringing ears and blurry vision, she can barely make out Lyndon’s shape in the distance, but notices the crowd has dispersed. She steadies herself as best she can and pulls the trigger with the last of her strength.
A FIGHTING CHANCE: SURVIVAL & LEGACY
One of Ashley’s colleagues pulls her over his shoulder and carries her to his vehicle. With no time to wait for an ambulance, he rushes to the nearest hospital with Ashley in the backseat. Meanwhile, Lyndon McLeod is declared dead at the scene. Unbelievably, Ashley managed to shoot right through his heart: the bullet entered Lyndon’s upper left side, the only area of his chest unprotected by his body armor.
In the following weeks, Ashley undergoes a series of surgeries as doctors fight to save her left leg. In another hospital, Jimmy is also recovering. Slowly regaining his strength, it’s not until he is finally released one week later that the reality of what has happened truly sinks in.
Eventually, it’s also time for Ashley to be discharged. She is immediately celebrated as a hero by her community.
But the title doesn’t sit easily with her. She can’t just accept the praise without being honest about what really happened that day. So she starts speaking up, sharing her story openly, with anyone who will listen. And for the first time, people begin to understand what she really went through to survive and stop Lyndon.
Today, Ashley runs A Fighting Chance, a non-profit organization aiming to help police, first responders, and the general public identify and treat signs of depression while developing resiliency through a focus on purpose. Meanwhile, with the tremendous help of his family and his community, Jimmy also gets better. His purpose remains to honor Alicia and Alyssa’s legacies. On the third anniversary of the tragedy, he shares a poignant message on social media:
It’s true what they say: the pain doesn’t go away, but you learn how to live with it. Tonight, I spent my evening alone. I made dinner and shared it with them. Past 5 PM, which is when I think the shootings began, I lit Alyssa’s Popoxcomitl and prayed. It was nice to be alone with them. I miss them, but I’m grateful for the time and love we shared. Thank you all so much for keeping the memory of these two amazing mujeres alive and continuing to honor them. Prayers up to all the families affected by the events of this tragic day. Prayers up to the lives lost. I hope all of your spirits are at peace.
—Jimmy Maldonado. December 27th, 2024.
Ashley’s non-profit, A Fighting Chance: https://www.afightingchanceltd.com/
To support the survivors, victims, and their families, please see the following pages:
Alicia Cardenas’s child: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-Cardenas-fa...
Jimmy Maldonado: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-soltribe-shooti...
Sarah Steck: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-sarahs-family-with...
Danny Scofield and his family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/danny-dano-blair-scofie...
Ashley Ferris: https://www.gofundme.com/f/qfugzz-help-our-friends...
Alyssa’s fund: https://www.groundingdown.com/alyssa-gunn-maldonad...
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Credits
Ashley’s non-profit, A Fighting Chance:https://www.afightingchanceltd.com/
To support the survivors, victims, and their families, please see the following pages:
Alicia Cardenas’s child: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-Cardenas-fa...
Jimmy Maldonado: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-soltribe-shooti...
Sarah Steck: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-sarahs-family-with...
Danny Scofield and his family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/danny-dano-blair-scofie...
Ashley Ferris: https://www.gofundme.com/f/qfugzz-help-our-friends...
Alyssa’s fund:https://www.groundingdown.com/alyssa-gunn-maldonad...
Written, directed & edited by Alexandre Gendron
Research by Manon Lafosse
Voiceover by William Akana
Produced by Alexandra Salois & Salim Sader
For more stories like this, subscribe to our YouTube here
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Sources
Documentary:
“Control, Alt, Delete”. Deadly Influence: The Social Media Murders: Warner Bros Discovery Inc. 2023. (Talos Films / Investigation Discovery)
Podcasts:
“Behind the Badge: A Story of Hope with Ashley Ferris”. From Survivor to Thriver: Erik Da Rosa and Marc Fernandes, 2023.
“Stay in the fight”. The muster room: Eric Potts and Austin Glickman / Joseph Ryder, 2023.
“Courage, Hope and Resilience” The Danny and Park Novels Good News Podcast, 2024.
“Denver's Tumultuous Tattoo History, In Alicia Cardenas's Own Words”. City Cast Denver, 2025.
“Alicia Cardenas, Denver, CO Full Length” The Nature Of Refuge. 2018.
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FreshAndFit's Double Standards For Women, Annamarie Forcino, 2021
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He Murdered 5 People. But Before Then, He Made a Movie About It., VICE, 2022
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FITXFEARLESS
Coffeehouse Crime
The 'Incel' Movement: How It May Have Motivated Toronto Van Attack, Inside Edition, 2018
Woman shares footage of assault by street harasser at Paris cafe, The Guardian, 2018
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Jimmy Maldonado, Wolf and Goat Tattoo
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corazon_de_tecpatl, Instagram
afightingchanceltd, Instagram
Alicia Cardenas, Facebook
Sanction I, Roman McClay, 2019
Sanction II, Roman McClay, 2019
Sanction III, Roman McClay, 2020
Getty Images
