1 arrested, accused in 2 deadly stabbings in Denver Thursday morning
Police in Denver have arrested one man wanted in connection to two deadly stabbings just a couple of miles and a few hours apart on Thursday morning. Vinchenzo Moscoso, 29, was arrested a short time after the second stabbing.
The first incident happened on an RTD bus early Thursday morning. The stabbing happened just after 5 a.m. on the bus at 32nd and Federal.
Police said the RTD bus driver called officers after the suspect stabbed the victim, a 51-year-old male, in the neck. The victim was rushed to the hospital but did not survive.
The driver said the suspect paid $5 after saying he couldn't find his bus pass. That's when the driver said she gave him an RTD day pass, worth $6, and he walked to the back of the bus. The driver said the next thing she knew, passengers were telling her to stop the bus because someone was being stabbed. The suspect exited the bus through the rear door and got away before officers arrived.
About 10:20 a.m. Thursday, there was a deadly stabbing in the 5000 block of Federal Boulevard, less than two miles north of the RTD bus stabbing. A witness told officers that the victim, a female about 80 years old, was lying on the ground bleeding from stab wounds on her neck and the suspect was standing nearby. That stabbing prompted Regis University to order a lockdown/shelter-in-place.
The suspect, later identified as Moscoso, was taken into custody at W. 55th Ave. and Lowell Blvd.
According to the arrest warrant, a knife was recovered from Moscoso's pocket that appeared similar to what was used to stab the bus victim to death. At the time of Moscoso's arrest, an RTD day pass, with an expiration date of Sept. 15, 2023 as well as a fare of $6 at the number 6509 printed on the ticket, the number of the bus where the deadly stabbing occurred, was found with his personal property at the time of his arrest.
Police say they have no motive for the killings.
Mocoso has a lengthy record, although most of the charges are driving infractions, or counts for not complying with court orders. But in 2019 he was arrested in Jefferson County for robbery and aggravated possession of a weapon.
He ultimately pleaded out and received a sentence of four years. That sentence in state prison, if served in full would have meant he would have been in prison until the end of this month. But records show he is out on parole.
Moscoso remains in custody for first-degree murder.
