LITTLETON, Colo. — A suspect who is accused of committing several crimes across the metro area including stealing multiple cars, breaking into a home and carjacking someone has been arrested.
It started when someone called the Wheat Ridge Police Department because there was a black sedan with no license plates parked in the 7600 block of West 44th Avenue. The department said that officers determined that the vehicle was stolen and tried to talk to the man inside.
The man drove off, sideswiping a patrol vehicle as left, according to police. They found the sedan abandoned shortly after.
Police said about 20 minutes after that first call, they responded to a home burglary in the 4100 block of Carr Street. The homeowner said a total stranger entered his house, pushed him to the ground, then took his keys and stole his car. Photographic evidence led police to believe it was the same suspect from the first call.
Wilmore-Elementary School was briefly placed on a lockdown while police were searching for the suspect.
The car stolen from the home was recovered in Lakewood just before 1:30, police said.
Around 2 p.m., the Littleton Police Department was searching for that suspect near South Windermere Street and West Ridge Road. The department said there was a large police presence in the area.
It's not clear what led police to that location.
Several Littleton schools and buildings were placed on a secure perimeter around as the search was underway. Those schools include:
- Powell Middle School
- Littleton Academy Charter School
- Heritage High School
- Euclid Middle School
- Options
- Runyon Elementary
- East Elementary
- Transition Services
- Education Services Center
By 3:30 p.m., Littleton Public Schools said the secure perimeter had been lifted. The district also specified that the police activity did not involve any of the schools.
At 4 p.m., Wheat Ridge Police said the suspect had been arrested in Englewood.
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