DENVER – The man who was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Saturday morning near 20th and Blake was identified Monday as a 25-year-old Lafayette man.
The Denver Medical Examiner identified the victim as Steven Glade, 25, and said his cause of death was trauma suffered from blunt- and sharp-force injuries.
Police still haven’t found the black Range Rover with Colorado license plates VXQ-677 that allegedly hit Glade just before 2 a.m. Saturday. It was last seen headed southbound on I-25, with heavy front-end damage, according to police.
Denver police told Denver7 Monday the vehicle was not reported stolen, as some had speculated.
A witness to the hit-and-run crash said he heard brakes screech as the SUV went through the intersection about 50 yards from where he was standing, and that Glade was already dead after he ran over to the scene.
The witness, James Burnett, said a motorcyclist took off after the Range Rover, but couldn’t keep up on the highway.
Steven’s brother, Jim Glade, told Denver7 his brother was “super funny and super smart,” and “kind of the life-of-the-party type of guy.”
He said Steven graduated with a degree in chemistry from Colorado State University and had gotten a job testing medical marijuana for potency and pesticides.
“The guy was the smartest guy—the smartest and nicest guy,” Jim said. “He’s the glue that kept his friends and our family connected. He would be the guy to reach out to you with a phone call and just start talking—like really when there wasn’t any need for it, you know. It was just that comforting thing.”
Jim said his family was pleading for the suspect to be found and brought to justice.
“If anybody knows anybody, please call the police. We need that. At the end of the day…my brother’s not coming back,” he said. “Justice definitely should be served, but it’s not going to change a lot. I just hope whoever was driving that night…will come forward. I hope anybody that has any information will also come forward. We need that.”
Anyone who knows who the driver of the Range Rover might be, or anything else about the crash, is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.