'I Don't Feel Safe': Aurora Family Fears Hate Crime, Moves Out After Bullets Strike Home
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4)- An Aurora family is in fear for their lives after their home was struck by multiple bullets in the middle of the night. They think it may have been a hate crime.
"I don't feel safe, I cannot sleep at night," said the father. He asked to remain anonymous because he is afraid of retaliation for telling his story.
He says it happened July 19 just after midnight.
He remembers it well, "I remember I went to the bed around 12:20 and I heard very bad shooting. I ran with my wife to the kids' room to make sure they are safe. I found all the glass down. The kids started screaming, crying, my wife the same thing."
The man is an Iraqi immigrant. He worked for the United States Army in the war and says he left Baghdad to start a family so that his kids wouldn't have to go through this. Now in Aurora, they are living his worst nightmare.
"The kids are crying. My older son, he wakes up two or three times a night, he's crying, he's shaking. He says, 'Dad are these people coming back to us?'"
He thinks he may have been the target of a hate crime because the assailants turned off his power before the attack so they wouldn't be seen on his security cameras. He has also received threatening calls at his job.
"These people know what they are doing," he says."They say, 'Middle Eastern pig... we are going to do this stuff.'"
He called 911 right away and Aurora police are investigating. They say they found multiple spent shell casings out front and bullet holes in the home. Whether it is, in fact, a hate crime is part of their investigation.
Aurora police say a neighbor saw two white or Hispanic males, possibly teenagers, run from the area when the shooting occurred. Both males were wearing dark jeans. The neighbor did not recognize the two from the neighborhood.
The victim wants this crime taken seriously and the case solved fast because he thinks it's not just he and his family who are in danger.
"I don't think this guy needs to stay on the street. They are going to do it to other people."
The family has since moved out of their home. If you have any information about this shooting, call the Aurora Police Department (303) 627-3100.