ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A 68-year-old-year-old Englewood woman was fatally shot by a neighbor in the doorway of her home after she and her roommate went to the door because they saw a silhouette outside, an arrest affidavit says.
Patricia Darlene Grass, 68, was found dead near the doorway of her home on Sept. 28. She had been shot in the head and arm, according to Englewood Police.
Officers responded to the area after her roommate, a 41-year-old man, reported the shooting near South Elati Street and West Radcliff Avenue. He told dispatchers someone came by the front patio of the home, and said they saw a silhouette outside.
He said Grass turned on the patio light and he was holding onto Grass' arm near the doorway because she had a hard time walking/standing when he heard several gunshots. He reported that Grass had been hit and he did not know where the shooter went other than southbound on South Elati Street.
When officers arrived, they encountered a man, identified as 30-year-old Quoc Nguyen, running west on West Radcliff Avenue. According to the arrest affidavit, he was carrying a rifle with magazine rounds in it, a pistol, a gunbelt with a pistol holster and extra rifle magazines. He was also wearing a tactical vest, according to police. He was taken into custody.
Officers then found Grass dead near the doorway of her home. Six fired shell casings were found just south of the porch. There were bullet strikes against the house, door and roof gutters. Based on the angles, the affidavit says, the rifle shots came from an angle below the porch going up toward the house.
Another neighbor said she saw a man with a gun running in the alley. The neighbor believed he ran into the garage of a nearby home, which police identified as Nguyen's, and did not come back out, the affidavit says. A truck in that home's driveway came back as registered to Nguyen.
Officers eventually did a sweep of that home and found the following:
- 3-4 rifles by a closet
- Rifle on a bed
- 2 pistols in a bedroom
- Rifle near a closet
- Firearm equipment in the bedroom
Investigators interviewed numerous family members at Nguyen's home, including his wife and mother. They indicated that the family ate dinner together and eventually everyone went to bed around 9 p.m. They woke up to the sounds of loud bangs around 10 p.m.
His wife indicated that Nguyen was not in the room with her at that time and she did not know where he was, according to the affidavit.
His family said they were not aware of Nguyen having weapons and did not know of any problems he had with his neighbors. His mom said he was always very friendly and "helpful" with the people who lived nearby, according to the affidavit.
At the jail, Nguyen initially indicated he would talk about what happened, but when the detective attempted to read him his rights, he immediately invoked his Fifth Amendment rights and did not want to talk about what took place, the affidavit says.
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