AURORA, Colo. — A man who was on parole for a 2005 attempted murder conviction was fatally shot by officers at an Aurora hotel after setting fire to a room, according to Aurora's interim police chief.
He was identified by the coroner's office as Alan Ray Walker.
The fire was reported around 11:20 a.m. in Room 47 at the Ranger Motel, located at 11220 E. Colfax Ave.
Aurora Fire Rescue and Aurora Police officers responded and confronted a man armed with a knife who was staying in Room 47, said interim Police Chief Dan Oates.
When confronted, the man retreated to Room 49 and refused to come out. That room was occupied, but the resident made it out safely, Oates said.
Several witnesses reported to officers that they had seen the man set the fire in Room 47.
For about an hour, officers attempted to get the man to come out of Room 49 and surrender. As they did so, they evacuated nearby rooms. Around 12:30 p.m., the man came out of the room with a knife and ran in the direction of officers, Oates said.
"He chose to come at an armed police officer with a rather large knife," he said.
Three officers fired at the suspect, but Oates could not say at this time how many shots were fired. The man was struck and taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Multiple knives were recovered at the scene, according to Oates.
Walker had a "significant criminal history" that included a 2005 attempted murder conviction for which he was sentenced to 28 years, Oates said. According to a spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Correction, he was released on parole on Jan.31, 2019.
Firefighters got the fire under control and searched for people and pets, according to a tweet from AFR. No injuries were reported from the fire.
Authorities asked the public to avoid the area of Colfax Avenue between Kingston Street and Lima Street as crews continued to work the scene.
Oates said he believes there are witnesses who might have video of the incident and asked anyone who does to provide that to police.
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