Douglas County deputies investigate gunshots near I-25 and E-470

BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

A large group of Douglas County sheri ’s personnel responded to an area near Interstate 25 and the E-470 toll highway after reports of shots being red, according to the Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce.

Two people exchanged gun re on May 3 at the intersection of Inverness Parkway and Jamaica Street, according to Sheri Darren Weekly. Witnesses and security camera footage observed the shooting, he said.

“We believe these two individuals were just shooting it out with each other,” Weekly said, adding that authorities don’t think the incident targeted the public.

e next day, Douglas County sheri ’s detectives came to the area of Jamaica and Inverness Parkway to execute a search warrant, the sheri ’s o ce tweeted at 5:20 p.m. May 4.

“Out of an abundance of caution, they have sent out a Code Red shelter-in-place noti cation,” the tweet said.

e sheri ’s o ce tweeted just before 8 p.m. May 4 that the shelterin-place noti cation had been lifted.

e o ce did not con rm whether detectives executed the search warrant on the residence of a suspect in the shooting.

“ ere isn’t much we are releasing now due to the nature of the investigation. We executed a search warrant based on information we discovered,” said Deputy Cocha Heyden, a sheri ’s o ce spokesperson. “ e suspect has not been arrested. At this point we cannot disclosed what was discovered.” e person on foot was a Black male, described as wearing a black hoodie coat and white tennis shoes, and he also might have had a black backpack with a logo on the back, Weekly said in a video posted by the sheri ’s o ce on Facebook. Authorities didn’t give a description of the person in the vehicle.

None of the suspects in the shooting have been arrested, and the investigation is ongoing, Heyden said at about 10 p.m. May 4.

Authorities received a call just before 2 p.m. on May 3 about the incident, and multiple 911 calls came in total, Weekly said. The incident occurred northeast of the I-25 and E-470 interchange, south of County Line Road in the Lone Tree area.

One of the shooters was in a dark-colored sedan and is believed to have had a handgun, according to Weekly. e other, on foot, was believed to have a “long gun” with a bright pink or orange strap, Weekly said.

“We have no reports of injuries right now. We’ve alerted hospitals to be on the lookout for anyone with gunshot wounds,” Weekly said at about 4:30 p.m. ere were still no known injuries, Heyden said at about 6 p.m.

Deputies were searching for suspects, Heyden said at about 3:20 p.m. But deputies believe both individuals have left the area, and they don’t think there’s “any speci c danger to the general public,” Weekly said about an hour later.

“ e vehicle continued southbound, drove around (an) apartment complex and left the area. e Black male was seen running north from the area and was also seen getting into an early-2000s white Tahoe in the passenger side,” Weekly said in the video.

Deputies are seeking a darkcolored Nissan sedan and the white

Tahoe, Weekly said in the video. Deputies don’t know whether the shooters were known to each other, and deputies aren’t aware of a motive for the incident, Weekly told Colorado Community Media. e investigation is continuing, Heyden said at about 6 p.m.

No damage to nearby apartments or other property was reported, Heyden said at about 6 p.m.

Anyone who has any information about the incident can email the sheri ’s o ce at dcsotips@dcsheri . net or call its tip line at 303-6607579.

Authorities had set up one road closure on South Valley Highway, one at Inverness Parkway and Inverness Drive South, and one at Jamaica Street and Liberty Boulevard, according to the sheri ’s o ce. “ e area and roads have been open to all normal operations,” the sheri ’s o ce tweeted at about 8:30 p.m.