DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — Three people, including a juvenile, were found dead at two locations in Douglas County on Thursday morning, and authorities said they believe the incidents are connected.
On Thursday afternoon, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office announced that it, along with the Parker Police Department, was conducting a joint death investigation at two different places in the county.
During a press conference on Thursday, Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly said the dispatch center received a 911 call at 8:51 a.m. from a citizen who had found a body at the top of the Rueter-Hess Incline, a popular place for Parker residents to exercise. The incline is next to the Rueter-Hess Purification Facility along the 13000 block of Ancestry Drive.
When deputies arrived, they found a deceased adult male and deceased juvenile male, Sheriff Weekly said.
The investigation at that scene led them to a second scene at Blackwolf Drive in Parker. The details of how the scenes were connected are not yet available.
Around 10:15 a.m., the sheriff's office asked for Parker police to respond to a home along that road.
Josh Hans, public information officer with the Parker Police Department, said its officers entered the home and found a deceased woman inside. While clearing the home, they also noticed a strong smell of natural gas, so they exited the home and alerted South Metro Fire Rescue, which responded to help with the reported gas leak.
Parker police said some homes around the intersection of Blackwolf Drive and Blackwolf Way were evacuated as a precaution. Residents were allowed back home around 10:45 a.m.
Investigators with the sheriff's office and police department believe the incidents and three deaths are related. The locations are about seven miles apart by car. They said there is no threat to the public and there are no concerns about other gas leaks.
As of now, this is being handled as a death investigation, Sheriff Weekly said.
The Rueter-Hess Incline is closed for the investigation and will likely open later Thursday or on Friday.
The deceased man was identified as Brandon Timms, 38, while the deceased woman was identified as Angel Meyers, 43. Authorities are not releasing the juvenile's identity at this time.
This remains an active investigation.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
