5 Shot, 1 Dead In Parking Lot Shooting Outside Juneteenth Celebration, Multiple Shooters Suspected
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4)- Five people were shot about 4:19 a.m. Sunday at a shopping mall parking lot located at 12455 East Mississippi Avenue in Aurora.
When officers arrived, they were confronted by a large crowd and then located an adult male suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Officers began CPR until he was rushed to the hospital. Unfortunately, he died a short time later.
Witnesses Angelica and Tevis tell CBS4 the man was in a car trying to leave at the time of the shooting. They remember seeing him the day before at two other events around town.
"He was a sweet soul, which was really unfortunate. He was a father himself so happy Father's Day to him and rest in peace," Angelica said.
Four additional victims, three adult males and one adult female self-transported to area hospitals. Their injuries range from minor to serious. None of the injuries are life-threatening.
"We didn't really know what was going on until shots just started firing in the air and everyone took cover. The shots covered this whole parking lot," Angelica said. "We're ducking under cars, we're running, we're looking for our friends. It was just really traumatizing."
Investigators said that witnesses told them there was a Juneteenth celebration in an unnamed unit of the shopping mall, though other witnesses told CBS4 the event was not related to the holiday. At one point, organizers began denying access to the event and that led to a group gathering in the parking lot.
"The business and the parking lot, we don't know exactly the relationship, but we're told they stopped allowing access," said Crystal McCoy with APD.
Crime scene investigators have collected more than 114 shell casings from the scene and believe that there were multiple shooters involved.
"We do have some early information that there could be possible gang activity. It's not ruled out, we're not 100 percent certain yet either," McCoy said.
Aurora police are asking anyone who has any information related to this incident to share their tips with Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720.913.STOP. Their tips can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000.