COPS ARREST 3 IN ARMED ROBBERY IN COMMERCE CITY

Police arrested three suspects in the armed robbery of a convenience store on East 56th Avenue in Commerce City overnight. "Using our Flock cameras, we located their getaway vehicle and tracked it to a nearby apartment complex," police said. Two firearms were confiscated, one of which was used in the robbery, police said.

FIREFIGHTERS RESCUE BEAR FROM TREE

In Colorado Springs overnight, the firefighters of Truck Company 8 helped state park rangers rescue a little bear from a tree on Crooked Arrow Lane. The bear is fine.

[Photos: Colorado Springs Fire]

FIRE ENGINE TAKEN ON JOYRIDE IN BOULDER, DAMAGED DURING CHASE

UPDATE

A thief - who, perhaps, had a blazing desire to be a firefighter - commandeered a Boulder fire engine and took it for a joyride early Wednesday.

Rescue Engine 143 was recovered at 1st Street and South Main Street in downtown in Longmont after a chase - and a suspect was taken into custody, Boulder police said. Police identified the suspect as Richmond Takashi Johnson, 35.

The engine crew was at the Boulder County Jail on a medical call when the suspect, who was just released from custody, hopped in the big red machine and drove off.

"The suspect was spotted at 34th Street and Valmont Road but refused to stop for law enforcement," police said. "He then drove south on Foothills Parkway before turning east on Arapahoe and then driving north on Highway 287.

"Longmont Police officers deployed stop sticks in multiple locations along Highway 287," deflating the engine's tires, police said.

A Boulder County sheriff's deputy suffered a minor injury during a foot pursuit. The engine sustained significant damage. Engine 143 is powered by electric batteries. Two sheriff's vehicles also sustained significant damage.

[Photos: Boulder Police]

COPS SEIZE DRUGS HIDDEN IN AUTO IN NORTHGLENN

In Northglenn, police earlier this month seized fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine hidden behind an auto's dashboard along with cash and a 9mm handgun loaded with a 10-round magazine. A police K9 from Broomfield detected the contraband. Two people were arrested. [Photos: Northglenn Police]

COPS RESCUE BEAVER FROM MIDDLE OF I-25 IN CASTLE ROCK

Police rescued an injured beaver from the middle of I-25 in Castle Rock and "he’s now safe and receiving the care he so desperately needed," according to Rocky Mountain Wildlife Alliance, which is based in Sedalia. [Photo: Rocky Mountain Wildlife Alliance]

2 CATS SAVED FROM HOUSE FIRE IN DOUGLAS COUNTY

Firefighters rescued two cats from a house fire on Jackson Lane in Douglas County, South Metro Fire said. The blaze broke out in the home's basement Monday. No injuries were reported. [Photo: South Metro Fire]

WIND-DRIVEN BLAZE GUTS HOME IN LOVELAND

Flames gutted a home Tuesday near South County Road 23 and West County Road 18, Loveland Fire Rescue Authority said. Fire crews contended with "challenging wind conditions," officials said. "The fire spread through attic spaces, leading to partial roof collapse." No one was hurt in the evening blaze. [Photo: Loveland Fire]

SUSPECT ARRESTED IN DOUBLE STABBING IN DENVER

Police arrested a suspect after two people were stabbed Tuesday in the Capitol Hill section of Denver.

The incident occurred in the 1100-block of North Logan Street and the injured were transported to hospital, police said. Streets were shut down in the area. Fox 31 reported police surrounded a building near East 12th Avenue and North Pennsylvania Street for several hours after the stabbing.

No other details were released.

THORNTON COPS ARREST SUSPECT IN MURDER OF WOMAN, 66

Joshua Pittman has been arrested in the murder of a 66-year-old woman at a home in Thornton, police said Tuesday.

Pittman, 35, and the victim were known to each other. Pittman also faces charges of tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse. Police said: "Officers initially responded to the location to check the well-being of a female. Upon entering the residence and conducting an extensive search of the home, they located a 66-year-old woman deceased." Pittman turned himself in to Northglenn police on Monday. The murder was committed April 24 in the 1900-block of West 101st Avenue. Pittman was locked up in the Adams County Jail. [Photo: Thornton Police]

FOX FAMILY 'BLOCKED OUT' OF HOME IN COMMERCE CITY

In the Potomac Farms section of Commerce City, an animal warden and police officer removed stones blocking the opening of a den occupied by a mother fox and seven kits. They also "put up signage warning people to steer clear," police said. [Photos: Commerce City Police]

GARAGE UP IN SMOKE IN WELD COUNTY

Fire leveled a garage overnight on 47th Avenue in Greeley. No injuries were reported. [Photos: Front Range Fire]

DENVER ZOO'S LION CUBS ARE 8 MONTHS OLD

The Denver Zoo's African lion cubs - Guion, Alpine Lily, Poppy and Olive - "have officially surpassed 100 pounds at just eight months old," zoo officials said Monday. [Photos: Denver Zoo]

HIGHWAY 550 RESCUE IN OURAY COUNTY

In Ouray County, a mountain rescue team, firefighters and medics went to the aid of a driver whose pickup truck careened down an embankment. The mishap occurred on Highway 550 on Saturday.

[Photo: Ouray Mountain Rescue]

LINCOLN COUNTY DEPUTIES STOP ARMED SUSPECT AFTER CHASE

With guns drawn, deputies arrested an armed and dangerous suspect in a domestic violence incident after a high-speed chase, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office said. The suspect then led deputies through parts of Lincoln and Kit Carson counties Monday. "The vehicle was ultimately stopped by tire deflation devices," the sheriff's office said, and the suspect was taken into custody. There were no injuries. The domestic violence incident that led to the chase occurred in the Genoa area, the sheriff's office said. [Photos: Lincoln County Sheriff]

SAYERS GUILTY OF MURDER AT COMMERCE CITY WATER PARK

An Adams County jury found Lumumba Sayers, 47, an anti-violence advocate, guilty of second-degree murder in a killing at the Paradice Island Water Park, prosectors said.

Malcolm Watson, 28, was fatally shot in the parking lot of the Commerce City venue during a child's party on Aug. 10, 2024 - a revenge killing for the death of Sayers' son in a shootout in Denver’s Five Points district a year earlier.

Sayers believed Watson was among those responsible.

The two-acre Paradice Island is located at Pioneer Park, 5951 Monaco Street.

The jury also found Sayers guilty of tampering with physical evidence and attempt to commit tampering with physical evidence on Monday. Sentencing is set for July 24.

[Photo: Adams County Sheriff, Commerce City website]

BLAZING SADDLES! COWBOY CATCHES FIRE

Flames erupted in a sign featuring a faded, waving cowboy at the Wranglers Motel & RV Ranch in Cimarron Hills, fire officials said. The cowboy survived Monday's emergency.

[Photo: Cimarron Hills Fire]

AUTO TAKES FLIGHT, HITS CHURCH IN EL PASO COUNTY

An auto rounding a bend took flight and slammed into the second story of a church in El Paso County, injuring the driver and a passenger, the Colorado State Patrol said.

The crash occurred on Main Street, south of Norman Drive, in Security-Widefield and the church suffered severe structural damage.

The doomed vehicle failed to navigate a right turn, went off the roadway, struck a landscape boulder and left the ground - taking out part of the church wall and a window and damaging the roof.

It landed on the church grounds on Saturday night. The driver is 18. The passenger is 14. Both are males from Colorado Springs.

[Photos: Security Fire]

SANTA FE DRIVE INFERNO: TANKER ERUPTS IN FLAMES, DRIVER DEAD

UPDATE

A fuel tanker erupted in flames early Monday, killing the driver and shutting down busy South Santa Fe Drive, Englewood police said.

The blaze - near the intersection with Chenango Avenue - scorched vehicles and a building at a U-Haul lot. Firefighters let the fuel burn off.

The driver's body was found inside the tanker. No other injuries were reported. The location is near the border of Littleton and Englewood.

South Metro Fire and Denver Fire responded as did the South Metro Hazmat Team. The alarm came in at 5:23 a.m. Santa Fe was closed for hours.
.
[Photo: South Metro Fire, Littleton Police]

DC SHOOTING RECALLS TRAGEDY AT STATE CAPITOL

Saturday's shooting during the White House Correspondents' Dinner recalls a tragic episode at the Colorado Capitol Building.

A state trooper shot and killed a gunman dressed in a rented tuxedo yelling "I am the emperor and I'm here to take over state government" outside Governor Bill Ritter's office on July 16, 2007.

The gunman's name was Aaron Snyder. He was armed with a loaded .357. Snyder was 32. 

He had been under a psychiatrist's care for delusional thinking, the Denver Post reported.  No one else was hurt. Snyder, of Thornton, told a woman at the tuxedo shop it was "the day of the emperor’s reign,” the Post said. 

If you or someone you know is struggling, help is available. Dial 988 - the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. [Photo: Wikipedia]

MAN DIES IN SHOOTING IN KIOWA

A man was shot to death at a home on Shasta Court in Kiowa, the Elbert County Sheriff's Office said. A suspect was arrested at the scene. The shooting occurred Friday. There were six people inside the home, the sheriff's office said.

DENVER POLICE MAKE ARREST IN BROADWAY KILLING

Rayzjuan Curry, 28, was arrested as a suspect in a killing on South Broadway near West Maple Avenue in Denver, police said. 

The victim, Torin Fluker, 25, suffered an apparent gunshot wound and died at hospital.

Curry, who faces a charge of first-degree murder, was arrested Thursday by the Denver police special operations team and the fugitive unit.

The suspect was arrested through interviews and surveillance video, police said.

COPS SEEK MAN IN MURDER IN THORNTON

Police sought Joshua Pittman, 35, as a "person of interest" in a homicide in Thornton. "Investigators believe Pittman and the victim were known to each other, and that this does not appear to be a random act," police said. The killing occurred Friday. 
 If seen, contact police immediately. [Photos: Thornton Police]

GUNMAN DIES IN SHOOTOUT WITH DENVER POLICE

A gunman died in an exchange of bullets with Denver police, Chief Ron Thomas said.

Officers confronted the man after responding to a report of a possible "carjacking situation" - and he fired a round at police, Thomas said in an online briefing.

They returned fire, including one officer armed with a rifle who fired a number of rounds, Thomas said.

None of the officers were hurt. The suspect was pronounced dead at hospital.

The incident occurred early Saturday at an apartment complex at 4363 South Quebec Street, Thomas said. [Photo: Denver Police]

YOUNG AT HEART? BURGLARY SUSPECT, 78, ARRESTED

Tom Piantes, 78, of Utah, accused of burglary in Moffat County, was arrested after driving into Wyoming and taking refuge in an abandoned house, the Moffat County Sheriff's Office said. He was jailed Wednesday in Carbon County, Wyoming.

BUC-EE'S BACK?

After scrapping plans for a travel center in Palmer Lake, a company with ties to Buc-ee's has purchased about 50 acres near I-25 and County Line Road in El Paso County for $10 million, Fox 21 in Colorado Springs reports. Buc-ee's first Colorado store is along I-25 at Johnstown.

COLD CASE: 'AMERICAN ELM' MURDERS IN DENVER

On April 24, 2023, as they were preparing for the lunch-hour crowd, two restaurant workers were gunned down in the West Highlands district of Denver.

Ignacio "Nacho" Morales, 58, a cook, and Emerall Vaughn-Dahler, 34, general manager, died instantly.

The motive for the murders at The American Elm is a mystery.   

Robbery was eventually discounted by Denver homicide detectives in the bloody, late morning crime in the 4100-block of West 38th Avenue.

On the third anniversary, Vaughn-Dahler's sister, Danica Woolard, told 9News: "We probably will never know why whoever did this did what they did, but we would at least be able to sleep better, knowing that they're not living their life while Emerall and Ignacio can't."

Autopsies, according to media reports, showed Morales was shot once and Vaughn‑Dahler suffered multiple bullet wounds.

If you have information, call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers (720) 913-7867.

TRAGEDY ON I-76 IN ADAMS COUNTY

A garbage truck struck and killed a pedestrian on a major highway in Adams County early Friday, the state patrol said. 

"Preliminary investigation information shows that a Peterbilt trash truck was westbound on Interstate 76 when it struck a pedestrian walking on the Interstate," the patrol said.

The accident occurred south of Thornton and shut down westbound lanes during morning rush hour. The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene, the patrol said.

BODYCAM SHOWS BRAVE DEPUTY'S RACE INTO BURNING HOME IN CENTENNIAL

Bodycam video shows a deputy kicking open the front door of a burning home in Centennial, searching as flames lapped at a window - and then lifting a backyard trampoline to help rescue a frightened dog.

A woman can be heard telling him: "I've been banging on that door and can't get whoever is in that house out." A man says: "That thing won't open." Arapahoe County Deputy Ligon is a school resource officer and was the first deputy to pull up on the huge blaze.
The images show wood flying as he kicked open the door.

The flames engulfed two neighboring dwellings on East Radcliff Place in Centennial on Monday. There were no injuries, the sheriff's office said. South Metro firefighters extinguished the two-alarm inferno.

[Photos: Arapahoe County Sheriff]

RED FLAG! BRUSH FIRES BREAKING OUT ACROSS COLORADO

It's been a busy week for wildland firefighting across Colorado.

Red flag warnings are flying.

Here's a view of a blaze on the edge of Fort Collins, courtesy of Poudre Fire Authority. The fire broke out in the 1200-block of Catalpa Place on Thursday. Firefighters stopped it. Loveland Fire Rescue Authority, Larimer County Emergency Services and Wellington Fire Protection District provided mutual aid. [Photo: Poudre Fire Authority]

UNEXPLODED ARMY SHELLS DISCOVERED IN EVERGREEN

U.S. Army bomb specialists removed two unexploded shells discovered in Evergreen, the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office said Thursday. "The ordnances were in the possession of a homeowner," the sheriff's office said. "The Army said 'Don't touch them.'" Members of the Jefferson County bomb squad responded with X-ray equipment. The incident occurred on Diamond Drive on Tuesday. No one was hurt.

[Photo: Clear Creek County Sheriff]

2-ALARM BLAZE HITS BIRCH APARTMENTS IN GLENDALE

UPDATE

A two-alarm fire caused severe damage Thursday to the Birch Apartments in Glendale.

No serious injuries were reported, the Denver Fire Department said. People were reported to be trapped on the roof.

More than 20 engines, ladder trucks and other units responded to the blaze in the 1100-block of South Birch Street.

[Photos: Denver Fire, Glendale Police]