DENVER — A man accused of shooting three people in Aurora last month suffered serious gunshot wounds himself in a remarkably similar incident in 2018, 9NEWS Investigates has learned.
That happened after Austin Benson allegedly fired at a retired police officer during a series of confrontations that unfolded over more than two hours as he drove north across El Paso and Douglas Counties on Rampart Range Road.
“He drew the AK,” the man, who lives outside Colorado, told responding police officers. “He shot a shot, and I just unloaded on him as he was driving away.”
Benson was charged with three counts of attempted murder after prosecutors accused him of shooting at multiple vehicles as he drove his Mazda.
The sequence of events plays out on body camera footage obtained by 9NEWS Investigates. The footage was captured by Manitou Springs police officers on July 2, 2018.
Officers from at least five department responded after a report at 12:24 p.m. that day that a man with a gun had tried to steal a car along Rampart Range Road in the Colorado Springs area. Over the next two hours, law officers raced north along the road, trying to intercept the man. It wasn’t until about 2:30 p.m. that Manitou Springs officers came upon the Mazda, its rear window blown out by gunfire, smashed against a tree.
The driver was bloody and unresponsive as the retired officer stood nearby, holding a gun on him.
The man suffered gunshot wounds to the back, upper arm, and face. A Manitou Springs officer grabbed a tourniquet and the retired officer helped him use it to stem the bleeding from a wound in the man’s upper arm.
Prosecutors charged Benson with three counts of attempted murder as well as with robbery and criminal mischief.
That criminal case languished for more than five years after doctors repeatedly concluded that Benson was not mentally competent to stand trial.
After doctors concluded that it was highly unlikely that treatment would restore his mental status “within the foreseeable future," a judge dismissed the case. The dismissal was required by state law once the judge concluded there was no hope of restoring the man’s competency any time soon – meaning that he could not understand the legal proceedings or assist in his own defense.
That was Oct. 26, 2023 – five years and three months after the man was first arrested.
He was free for all but 42 days over that span, according to court records obtained by 9NEWS Investigates.
On June 27, Benson allegedly drove through an Aurora neighborhood, firing at other motorists.
Three people suffered gunshot wounds, including a 50-year-old woman whose injuries were life-threatening. A 35-year-old man suffered serious injuries to his arm, and the man’s 74-year-old mother was also wounded.
The arrest affidavit in the current case remains sealed.
Benson faces four counts of attempted first-degree murder and numerous other charges. He is due back in court on Thursday for a status hearing.
Contact 9NEWS investigator Kevin Vaughan with tips about this or any story: kevin.vaughan@9news.com or 303-871-1862.