JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colorado — A 24-year-old man faces charges in connection with the death of his aunt who was found dead with a significant head injury inside a home on West Geddes Circle in Jefferson County last week.
Angel Rodriguez was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) said.
Deputies responded to the 10200 block of West Geddes Circle at 1:45 p.m. on April 14 after a 911 caller said there had been a murder, according to JCSO. When deputies got there, the release said they encountered Rodriguez outside. He was barefoot and shirtless, according to an affidavit for his arrest. He was also breathing heavily and visibly shaking, a responding deputy with JCSO noted.
Rodriguez told that deputy that someone had been murdered, the affidavit says. He went on to say that he heard "screaming" in the area and that his "senses told him someone had been murdered," the affidavit says. He reported the murderer was inside the house, according to the document.
Deputies observed a vehicle at the home that Rodriguez said belonged to his aunt, who lived at the home along with Rodriguez and his parents, the affidavit says.
They attempted to check on Rodriguez's aunt but got no answer when knocking on the door, the affidavit says. Deputies then called Rodriguez's mother, who provided them with a code to enter the home to check on the woman, the document reads.
Once inside the affidavit says a deputy found what appeared to be dried blood in the hallway, which he followed through the kitchen into a living room area, where he found a woman lying on the floor near a fireplace.
The woman had sustained obvious traumatic injuries to her head, according to the document. Deputies also located a bloody shoe/boot print on the floor and a gun that had blood on it in multiple places, the affidavit says, and one of the gun's handle grips was broken off.
A knife with a large amount of what appeared to be blood on the handle and the blade was also recovered, according to the document.
JCSO said earlier that same morning at 5:10 a.m., deputies responded to the same address for a welfare check. The sheriff's office said the caller, who was believed to be Rodriguez, gave dispatchers a partial address and then hung up without saying what the emergency was about.
Deputies responded to do a welfare check, but they were unable to make contact with anyone in the home. They spoke on the phone with Rodriguez's mother, who owns the home, and she explained that her son was experiencing a mental health issue and said the family would be able to handle it and would call the sheriff's office if necessary, according to the affidavit.
Deputies left without entering the home. They later spoke with Rodriguez's stepdad, according to the document, who said he spoke to everyone in the home including the victim, Rodriguez and another person at 6:30 a.m. He reported that they all denied any conflict or problems, the affidavit says.
At one point, following his arrest, Rodriguez agreed to speak with investigators, but his statements during the brief conversation were "rambling" and "difficult to understand," the affidavit says.
During that interview, he said, "there is a fraud person pretending to be my father, that's who I attacked," according to the document. When asked what happened to the victim, he responded, "I would not like to answer," the affidavit says.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Latest from 9NEWS