2 Thornton officers injured in shooting, suspect killed

DENVER ( KDVR ) — Two police officers were injured and a suspect was killed following a shooting in a Thornton neighborhood on Wednesday morning.

Around 8 a.m. Wednesday, Thornton officers were called to the 16000 block of Columbine Street by a resident who was walking their dog. The caller said they heard popping sounds coming from inside a house. Other witnesses also told police they heard gunshots.

“We heard the shots fired for sure. You know, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. Lots of shots going off,” Aaron Lundblade, an Orchard Farms neighbor, told FOX31’s Gabrielle Franklin.

Jordan Bryant was working in the neighborhood when the shots rang out.

“We heard some little shots maybe fireworks. We weren’t sure to sure what it was. We heard something go pop pop! And we ducked down, got out of the way. Now we’re standing out right here,” Bryant said.

When officers arrived on scene, they surrounded the house and attempted to make contact with anyone inside. A shelter-in-place was then issued for residents nearby.

Suspect exits house, fires at officers

According to Thornton Interim Police Chief Greg Reeves, at around 9 a.m., a man, who police believe was a resident of the home, exited the house carrying what police said was a long rifle.

Reeves said the man then began firing at officers.

Two officers were injured by either gunfire or shrapnel, according to Reeves. The two officers were taken to different hospitals. Both are in stable condition and are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

In an afternoon press conference, Reeves said one officer was shot and remained in the hospital as of 3:30 p.m. He did not have specifics on the officer’s injury but said the shot appeared to have hit the officer’s upper body near his shoulder. The other officer was hit by glass and shrapnel and was treated and released.

All officers who fired shots have been placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated, as is standard procedure. Reeves believes the suspect was hit by officers’ gunfire, which caused him to retreat into the home.

At one point, the suspect could be seen from SkyFOX sitting on the back porch as bullets appeared to hit the home.

After about 15 to 20 minutes, the suspect did not re-emerge from the home after exchanging gunfire with police. At that point, Reeves said the SWAT team deployed a drone, allowing officers to see inside the home. The SWAT team then entered the home briefly and confirmed the male suspect had died.

At 10:40 a.m., Thornton police said there was no longer a threat to the area and that all emergency alerts had been lifted.

It is unclear if the suspect died from injuries sustained by officers or self-inflicted. That information was unavailable Wednesday afternoon as well, and Reeves was unable to say if the suspect used multiple weapons or one “weapons system” during the incident. He confirmed that multiple rounds were fired by the suspect.

Reeves said the suspect was the only person inside the home at the time of the shooting, but investigators had not been able to enter the home until about 2:30 p.m. after obtaining a search warrant. Details from inside the home were sparse on Wednesday.

Nicole Rusell, a neighbor in Orchard Farms, said she knows many police officers in the city, and was concerned.

“We know a lot of the officers in Thornton so it kind of hit close to home,” Rusell said. “Very scary. I’ve heard that they are going to be okay, which is great.”

Although the area is now secure, neighbors told FOX31’s Gabrielle Franklin that the experience was a shock to their normally quiet neighborhood.

“It kind of shakes you a little bit. You think your neighborhood is generally a safe place,” Lundblade said. “Then when stuff like this happens, you kind of get you know, a little uneasy right?”

Resources offered, many agencies involved with incident

North Metro Fire Rescue, Commerce City police and Thornton Fire assisted Thornton police, alongside handfuls of other agencies, including the Colorado State Patrol. A Flight for Life helicopter was also called to the scene as a precaution.

The 17th Judicial District Critical Incident Team is leading the investigation and the Adams County Coroner will release the identity of the suspect. Reeves said the department is in contact with the family of the suspect.

Additionally, Reeves said the agency is working to ensure the community has resources to deal with this incident. To that end, anyone who needs support is asked to call the Thornton Police Department’s Victim Services Unit at 720-977-5172.

Anyone who has information about this incident and has not been contacted by police investigators is asked to contact the police department at 720-977-5069.

As of Wednesday afternoon, officers were interviewing residents of the neighborhood. They told FOX31 that they’re asking neighbors if there have been any kind of problems at the home before.

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