DENVER — Officers are looking for three suspects after one person was killed and five others were injured in a shooting Tuesday afternoon in the area of Verbena Street and East Colfax Avenue, the Denver Police Department said.
Police said officers were investigating the shooting in the 1400 block of Verbena Street. A man was pronounced dead at the scene, and three men and two women were taken to the hospital.
Three of the victims taken to the hospital were in critical condition. The other two suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. DPD said Wednesday that a man and woman have been released from the hospital, and that two men and a woman who are still receiving treatment are expected to survive.
The scene appeared to be centered around Michael Discount Store at 8332 E. Colfax Ave.
Just after 1:50 p.m., officers received a "shot spotter" alert indicating multiple gunshots had been fired in the 1400 block of Verbena. Shortly after that, several 911 calls were made reporting multiple victims had been shot, police said.
Investigators believe three suspects in a vehicle going north on Verbena stopped, got out of the car and fired multiple gunshots at the victims, who were standing on the curb near the intersection of Verbena and Colfax.
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Alize Adams just started managing a motel on Colfax, just one block down from where the shooting occurred. She said she could hear gunshots from her office and quickly came outside.
She said her first concern was for her tenants.
“Everybody is pretty much like family around here," she said. “Usually my tenants come up and down this road."
Jack Jacka, a tenant at the Orlando Apartments next door to where the shooting occurred, has lived in the area for around a decade.
"Definitely didn’t sound like nail guns from the construction across the street," he said
The victims were just standing on the corner, and there was no apparent conflict, police said.
After the shooting, the suspects went east on Colfax, abandoned the car they were in, and got into a black Ford Explorer near the intersection of 12th Avenue and Yosemite Street.
Police said Wednesday morning that the Explorer was located, unoccupied in the 3900 block of N. Colorado Boulevard sometime Tuesday evening.
Anyone with information on the vehicle pictured below is asked to call 720-913-7867.
Jacka said the rate of crime, in his opinion, has remained consistent since he's lived in the area.
“I believe it’s been kind of roughly similar in this neighborhood," he said.
At a press conference, DPD Commander Matt Clark said the area was identified as a "higher violent crime area" and that police were working to put additional resources in the area.
“And part of that response is not only just saturation, but it’s also coordinating with the community to help further and have a combined response to help combat this crime," he said.
Editor's Note: Police provided different information throughout the afternoon about the number of victims. As of 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, they said there were six victims in the shooting.
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