AURORA, Colo. — A man arrested in connection with a shooting at an Aurora senior living center that injured his wife and stepfather repeatedly denied involvement and instead insisted an intruder was responsible, according to an affidavit from the Aurora Police Department (APD).
Fermin Bonsell, 34, is being held on suspicion of:
- Menacing
- Attempted homicide
- Second-degree assault
- Crime of domestic violence
The shooting happened on April 11 at 1324 Xanadu St, which is near East Colfax Avenue and Potomac Street. Bonsell's mother initially called 911 just before 5 a.m. and reported that her son at fired shots at her, the affidavit says. She told police that she was no longer inside her residence, but that her husband and Bonsell's wife were still inside and she did not know if anyone had been shot, according to the document.
About five minutes later, another call came in from someone who reported that an intruder entered their apartment and "shot us," the affidavit says. The caller was later identified as Bonsell, according to the document. He reported that four people had been shot and that he could not find his mother, the affidavit says.
Responding officers were waived down by Bonsell's mother and then entered a one bedroom apartment through a patio door, the affidavit reads.
They located a 71-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the head who was lying in a hospital-type bed and yelling for help, the affidavit says. The officer also located a 44-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to her arm, according to the document.
Bonsell was on a couch next to the male victim and appeared to be to having a "panic or anxiety attack," the affidavit says. Bonsell detailed to investigators that an intruder entered through the patio door and shot his wife and stepdad, and he provided a description of that suspect which was then aired over police radios, the affidavit says.
RELATED: 'It's heartbreaking to see the ongoing violence': 1 woman killed, 1 injured in shooting in Aurora
Bonsell's mom also told investigators that an intruder was responsible for shooting but could not provide a description, the affidavit says. When an officer told her he did not believe she was being truthful, she blurted out that her son Fermin did the shooting, according to the report.
She said Bonsell had been acting "strangely and paranoid" and was taking drugs which she described as "blues," the affidavit says. She said she believed his paranoia was the result of the drugs he was taking, according to the document.
Bonsell's mom reported that he was talking "incoherently" and had threatened to shoot everyone in the room, the affidavit says. At one point, Bonsell put a handgun next to his stepdad's temple and his head began to bleed "because of the pressure," the affidavit says. She reported that she "pleaded" with Bonsell to stop because she believed her husband needed medical attention, according to the affidavit.
She reported that Bonsell then pointed the gun toward his wife who was standing in the kitchen and fired a shot at her, according to the document, and his mother reported that she did not know if his wife had been hit.
Bonsell's mother said she crouched down and then ran out of the apartment through the patio door, the affidavit says. She reported that she felt a bullet whiz by her head, according to the document. Investigators noticed that glass behind a blind was shattered, leading them to believe a gun had been fired from inside the apartment toward the outside, the affidavit says.
When Bonsell was interviewed he repeatedly denied he was the shooter and repeated his earlier statements about an intruder being responsible, according to the affidavit.
Both his mother and wife positively identified him as the shooter, the affidavit says.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Latest from 9NEWS