THORNTON, Colo. — First came the incident near 84th Avenue and Pecos Street.
“Somebody abruptly cut me off,” said Patrick Roskelley.
The two drivers exchanged heated words, but kept going.
“I yelled something I shouldn’t have, but I thought that was it and we had a clean break,” Rosekelley said.
Then came the attack.
“He kicks the door in, it flies open, hits the refrigerator,” he said.
Roskelley had no idea the other driver followed him home, a man and a woman in the other car who then came through his backyard and to the door — road rage gone overboard.
“I tried to hold the door closed, but fell back into a table that was here that was glass,” Roskelley said.
Once through the door, Roskelley says the suspect assaulted him.
Photos taken shortly after the attack show Roskelley battered, bloody and bruised. He also had a broken sternum.
“I was hit in the face, four, five, six times – I don’t know how many times,” he said. “You’re not like Jackie Chan and can grab the towel and whip over the frying pan and clock the guy or whatever.”
Roskelley was able to grab his attacker’s mask and through DNA evidence collected from that – police issued an arrest warrant back in May 2021 for Aaron James Dunn.
“Felony burglary with intent to harm and then misdemeanor assault,” Roskelley said.
But 11 months later, police have yet to make an arrest.
Thornton Police told Denver7 Wednesday it lacks the resources for a fugitive task force to hunt down those with warrants who could be hiding out or may have even fled the state.
There is an active, open case filed with the Adams County District Attorney’s Office. No court dates have been set.
“And so – I need to have him, either A) commit another crime, or B) get pulled over or have any other interaction with police – let’s say he travels somewhere and uses a passport,” Roskelley said.
Roskelley is now sharing his story so that others know: Do everything you can to protect yourself and your family.
“I didn’t have dash cams for the front or rear of my car,” he said. “I didn’t have a security camera on the back door of my house.”
And he says the wheels of justice move extremely slow – and often not at all in some cases.
“I just feel that there’s no accountability once the person is out in the wind,” Roskelley said. “That’s why I’m really happy to tell my story to you and your viewers because it’s really important for people to know.”