Six people injured, including suspect, after Denver officers shoot at armed man in LoDo
Sunday morning Denver Police officers were already in LoDo as bars closed and people poured into the street. That's when officers were flagged down.
"The officers' attention was drawn to a disturbance with an armed party," said Denver Police Division Chief Ron Thomas in a statement DPD posted on social media.
The disturbance was on the corner of Larimer and 20th streets. Division Chief Thomas says the armed suspect "posed a significant threat" so officers fired their weapons.
"The party went down and officers immediately began to render aid," said Division Chief Thomas.
Late Sunday afternoon, Denver PD announced it had arrested 21-year-old Jordan Waddy regarding the incident. Waddy is being held on Felony Menacing and Possession of a Weapon by a Previous Offender charges, per DPD.
The department said that Waddy pointed a gun at officers. Three officers fired at Waddy, injuring him. He is expected to survive.
Additionally, DPD stated that five other people - three women and two men - were injured as a results of officers' gunfire. All are also expected to survive their injuries.
In its press release, DPD pointed out that any number of the injuries could be the "indirect" result of the shooting, such as ricochets or schrapnel.
Waddy, the department stated, apparently did not fire his weapon.
The multi-agency team conducting the investigation into the incident includes personnel from Colorado Bureau of Investigations, Colorado State Patrol, Denver District Attorney's Office, Denver Police Department, and includes oversight from the Office of the Independent Monitor.
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Isaak Rhynes works in the area and says he heard 5 or 6 quick pops which he thought were fireworks. He looked out the window of his building toward the scene just in time to witness the aftermath.
"I see a woman collapse and at first a didn't really realize what was happening because there was a massive crowd and everyone sort of took off running in different directions," said Isaak. "After a couple of seconds, I see just this ooze of blood spurting out of her leg and she was very clearly unwell."
An ambulance was sent to the scene but soon officers realized they would need more than one.
"They also became aware of other individuals in the crowd that had been injured as a result of this incident," said Division Chief Thomas.
Isaak says he didn't know who was shooting at the time. He only found out later police were involved.
"I didn't find out until this morning that it was police who unloaded into a crowd of people, which is something to behold," he said.
Working late nights in Downtown Denver, Isaak says he's seen a lot of violence and isn't surprised something like this would happen early on a weekend morning.
"It's not unusual, but it's not fun. That's for sure," he said.
This wasn't the only shooting in the area Sunday night. There was also a shooting blocks away at 18th and Welton.
This is the third time in the span of a week that Denver Police officers have shot someone. On Friday an officer shot and killed a man authorities said was stabbing his partner. On Wednesday, officers shot and killed a man who they say fired shots at pursuing officers.
Waddy, meanwhile, has five prior criminal cases in his arrest record, per a search of online criminal records. This includes an arrest in Aurora for 1st Degree Murder which was pleaded down to aggravated robbery charges. The judge suspended a prison sentence in favor of sending Waddy to a youth offender program. Waddy was 18 years old at the time of sentencing.
He is scheduled to appear in court Monday for an advisement on Denver's charges.
