Competing rallies ended in tragedy in Denver today outside the Civic Center.

Conservatives were holding a “Patriot Rally” in the amphitheater area at the same time as BLM/Antifa folks were holding a competing rally separated by the police and barriers.

While the conservative group held signs decrying socialism and communism, and chanted in support of the police, the BLM/Antifa group had a literature table, encouraging people to join the Colorado Socialist Revolution.

According to The Post Millennial, the invitation to the radical rally included the following.

“Join the Denver Communists, Colorado Socialist Revolution, Anon Resistance Movement, W.I.T.C.H. Denver, H.O.E.S. (Help on Every Street), Front Range Mutual Aid Network, and more for a Black Lives Matter Anti-Fascist Soup Drive & Pop-up Communist Bookswap!” reads an invite posted on social media.

“Additionally, we will be counterprotesting a fascist rally that is supposed to happen at the same time and place!” the invitation continues. “The plan is to outnumber and outshine the fascists, set up our tables and tents in Civic Center Park, as near as we can be to the fascists! We want to send these worms back into their holes, demoralized and isolated, with only their racist, r*pist president to console them. We’ll have a soup for our family, music, speakers, communist books, and plenty of angry anti-fascists chants.”

The radicals burned a thin blue line flag right in front of the police as they mocked them.

Denver earlier pic.twitter.com/CA2pS9tUi3

— Kitty Shackleford (@KittyLists) October 10, 2020

Things went very wrong when some of the BLM/Antifa folks breached the barriers to the conservative rally. Police fired pepper balls at the BLM/Antifa people.

But the police and people from both sides were standing around when an interaction went very wrong.

Warning: graphic

Potato video, but here is the person shooting the gun at the #Denverprotests, and the scene after (Denver, CO) pic.twitter.com/N1FksCXWiW

— Kitty Shackleford (@KittyLists) October 10, 2020

According to witnesses, a conservative person sprayed mace at a person. Then that person fired a shot, killing the conservative. The police took the shooter into custody along with another person. That shooter was identified in initial reports as affiliated with the Antifa group but now police are saying that he was a security guard not connected to Antifa.

Update: Further investigation has determined the suspect is a private security guard with no affiliation with Antifa. Additional information will be released as it becomes available.

— Denver Police Dept. (@DenverPolice) October 11, 2020

Here’s another angle of the moments right before the shooting. Warning for language.

Warning graphic ⚠️ – Here’s the moment right before the shooting in Denver and as shot rings out.. https://t.co/PfGbl9khGU

— CIA-Simulation Warlord 🇺🇸🎃🇺🇸 (@zerosum24) October 11, 2020

Denver Post published the moment of shot. pic.twitter.com/shMZbO5d1Z

— A Radical Moderate (@ARadicalModera1) October 11, 2020

Reports indicate he had the gun out already before the mace.

We’ll keep you updated as we learn more about the case.

HT: Townhall