Stolen Vehicle Suspects Exchange Gunfire With Jefferson County Deputies Before Crash, Arrest

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)- The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is investigating a shooting that involved law enforcement officers on Thursday evening. The miles-long chase and shooting ended with a crash in the area of Radcliff Avenue and South Union Street.

It started early Thursday morning when a business, Maxx Steel on Goddard Ranch Court, was burglarized. One of the items stolen was a vehicle.

The owner of the stolen vehicle located it about 6 p.m. in an RTD parking lot at Twin Forks and Highway 285. That's when the owner started following his truck, which was driven by one of the suspects.

"The owner of the vehicle followed the stolen vehicle onto Highway 285 and called it into dispatch," said Jefferson County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Jenny Fulton. "We told him to disengage and he dropped back but the suspects fired shots at the owner and that's when we initiated a pursuit on reports of a civilian being shot at."

The suspects, identified as two adult males, then shot at deputies while continuing to drive along Turkey Creek Road before getting back onto Highway 285. The suspects then tried to cross Highway 285 near C-470 and lost the trailer attached to the stolen truck in the median.

When they lost the trailer, both of the front tires were flat and the suspects then exchanged gunfire with deputies. That's when the suspect vehicle went into the Weaver Hollow Ballpark area and cut through the field. There were children and families at the ballpark when the stolen truck with two flat tires came barreling through the field.

The suspects finally crashed the truck into an RV at Radcliff Avenue and South Union Street. One of the law enforcement vehicles involved in the pursuit "rammed into the back of the stolen truck to make sure it wasn't going further," according to Fulton.

The two suspects ran away. They were arrested a short time later.

"We have felons that are shooting at civilians and we have to make sure that they are stopped and taken into custody," said Fulton.

There are multiple crime scenes along Highway 285 between South Turkey Creek and C-470. The highway was closed northbound from Highway 8 to C-470 during the investigation.

There are no reports of any injuries among law enforcement. The two suspects were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

"We have several crime scenes, Tiny Town being one of them," said Fulton. "Thankfully nobody was injured and we were able to bring the vehicle to a stop."

The 1st Judicial District Attorney's Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) will investigate the officer-involved shooting.

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• Jefferson County News