On Thursday afternoon, police officers went to an emergency call about a brawl at an apartment complex and shot a guy who they claimed was involved in the altercation and was carrying a rifle. The man died, according to Aurora police.
The victim was shot near the intersection of 16th Avenue and Oswego Street. That’s a couple blocks west of the Fitzsimmons Hospital campus and one block north of East Colfax Avenue.
At 1:30 p.m., police went to a complaint of a dispute in an apartment complex. According to one of the emergency reports, one of the persons involved in the altercation was carrying an AR-15-style gun. When they arrived, officers spotted that person.
“The cops approached the individual. “They made several verbal contacts with the individual to get him to drop his weapon,” Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain stated. “At that point, gunfire was exchanged by the officers towards the individual with the weapon and the individual fell to the ground.”
The person who was shot was brought to the hospital after being treated on the spot. He was declared deceased in the hospital. A person in a nearby office reported hearing six loud gunshots and finding a huge police presence when he walked outdoors.
The person who was killed has yet to be recognized. The second guy involved in the altercation was not wounded, and police interviewed him later in the afternoon.
Chamberlain told reporters that the location of the shooting was very alarming.
“We have a vast area that is used for youngsters who are going to get medical attention across the street. “There is a school just down the street behind us,” he explained.
“That’s very alarming to see that environment, and then to see individuals that are walking around in this environment involved in arguments with an assault-type style weapon, which, again, we are still investigating and still trying to determine the exact circumstances of what that weapon is.”
The police chief stated that body camera footage from the officers who responded will be reviewed as part of the investigation into the shooting.