DENVER — A man has been arrested and is facing a first-degree murder charge for allegedly stabbing another man in the back in downtown Denver last week.
Joaquin Alejandro Romero, 23, was arrested Friday for the Feb. 20 incident, according to an arrest affidavit.
The affidavit says police were called to 1501 Lawrence St. in Denver at around 12:30 a.m. after a witness came across a man who was bleeding and non-responsive.
The victim, later identified as John Otto, 27, had been stabbed in the back with a kitchen knife, the affidavit says.
Otto was rushed to the hospital, according to the affidavit, and was pronounced dead a short time after arriving.
Three backpacks were also found near Otto and were collected by paramedics, according to the affidavit. There is no word on what was in those backpacks.
Through their investigation, the affidavit says police were able to find surveillance video from near where the crime occurred that showed Romero and Otto walking together and then Romero fleeing the area a short time later.
The affidavit says video also showed Romero getting on an RTD bus a few blocks away.
Police were able to get photos of Romero from surveillance video on the bus.
After getting off the bus, surveillance video showed Romero approaching a bar, the affidavit says. On Feb. 22, police returned to that bar with the photos and someone there was able to identify the suspect in them as Romero.
On Oct. 26, 2018, Romero had been arrested by Denver police on an outstanding warrant after a traffic stop, according to the affidavit.
Investigators were able to match the photo of Romero from that arrest with the RTD surveillance images.
Romero is currently being held on a charge of first-degree murder.
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