AURORA, Colo. — Police are investigating after a 16-year-old girl was shot and killed in an apparent home invasion in west Aurora early Tuesday morning, according to a spokesperson with the city’s police department.
Police responded to a report of a home invasion and shooting near E. Jewell Ave. and S. Havana St. at about 6:15 a.m. There, police found the teen with an apparent gunshot wound.
Officers performed life-saving measures on the girl until medical responders arrived at the scene, at which point the girl was rushed to a local hospital for treatment, where officials said she later died.
The identity of the girl has not been released pending notification to family members by the Arapahoe County Coroner.
Denver7 spoke with neighbor Christopher Espinoza, who said he heard some of the commotion early Tuesday morning.
"I heard around two gunshots. As I looked out the window, I saw two individuals fleeing," Espinoza recalled. "Another male did exit the house, saying that they shot his baby. He repeated that several times, 'They shot my baby! They shot my baby!' At that time, he was escorted back into the apartment, and that's when I called 911."
Espinoza said he and his family were shocked that this happened so close to their home.
"To see someone actually going through that kind of pain, it hurts," he added.
He told Denver7 that he saw two men running from the apartment shortly after he heard the shooting.
"They had their heads down, that's all I know. I don't want to give too much information, of course, because I was talked to by the police already," Espinoza said. "But they had their heads down. There was two — two individuals, and they were running from the scene. They ran westbound from the apartment complex."
"No reason to believe" crime is related to Venezuelan gang violence, police say
A preliminary investigation into the deadly shooting revealed that two men showed up to the apartment where the teen girl lived sometime before 6 a.m. Tuesday and a physical struggle ensued where multiple shots were fired, resulting in the girl getting shot, according to Aurora Police Captain Marc Paolino, who provided more details about the crime during a brief news conference later Tuesday.
Police have not identified the suspects, but Paolino said investigators were still trying to determine what relationship — if any — there was between the suspects and the teen girl.
"We're unsure at this point on how exactly they got in, if they were led in or (whether they) forced their way in," Paolino said, adding that investigators will look at the criminal history of the apartment complex to determine if gang activity was to blame.
"We have no reason to believe at this point that this is TdA related," Paolino said, referring to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua, whose crimes have been on the forefront of city leaders' minds since the gang made headlines after claims surfaced that some members had "taken over" a troubled apartment complex last summer.
Just last month, 16 suspected members of the Venezuelan gang were taken into custody following a violent kidnapping in Aurora.
"At this point, we're not aware of any specific gang-related problems, but that will be something that our investigators will be actively looking into," Paolino said.
Police ask for public's help to find suspects
During the news conference, Paolino once again urged residents or anyone who may know more about the crime to contact police with any information to "get these people off the streets as quickly as possible."
"While we're still trying to figure out what exactly occurred this morning, I don't want us to lose sight that a 16-year-old girl lost her life, and that is a terrible, terrible tragedy, and our prayers and thoughts are with family on this terrible day," Paolino said.
The investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous and could be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000.
Denver7's Kristian Lopez contributed to this report.
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