ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — A man took a plea deal in connection with a violent series of crimes, including second-degree murder, across Aurora and Denver in 2021, and was sentenced on Tuesday afternoon.
Andrew Jacobs, 34, was sentenced to 85 years in prison for the various crimes, which included murder, carjackings and home invasions over a two-hour span, the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office announced on Tuesday.
The charges stem from Nov. 10, 2021, starting at 3:21 p.m., when Jacobs tried to rob a woman in her garage along the 14000 block of E. Idaho Drive. He fired shots into her garage, stole her purse and ran away, the district attorney's office said. He tried to steal her car, but was unable to get it.
At 3:29 p.m., Jacobs approached an apartment complex along the 1400 block of E. Iowa Drive, which was about a quarter of a mile away. Carlos Julio Albarracin, 34, and his 6-year-old son were inside a truck near the apartment when Jacobs shattered the driver's side window and shot and killed Albarracin. The child was able to escape before Jacobs stole the vehicle and drove away.
"The boy's father died as a result of his injuries while protecting his child," the district attorney's office said.
Jacobs dumped the car about two miles away and broke into a home along the 1200 block of S. Memphis Street. The homeowner was pistol-whipped before Jacobs ran away, the district attorney's office said.
He neared S. Lewiston Way and broke into another home, forced the homeowner to hand over the keys to her car, and then drove off before abandoning it 1.5 miles away, along the 15500 block of E. Center Avenue, the district attorney's office said.
At 3:39 p.m., he robbed a person at gunpoint about half a mile away and stole their vehicle, which he then abandoned about a mile away along the 400 block of N. Chambers Road. After leaving the car, he stole another vehicle at gunpoint along the 15200 block of E. 6th Avenue and dumped it around E. 38th Avenue and N. Chambers Road, about three miles away, the district attorney's office said.
Police responded to a reported carjacking at 3:55 p.m. at a gas station along the 3700 block of N. Chambers Road. The car owner had fought back and when Jacobs got into the driver's side of her car, she yanked him out, the district attorney's office said. Jacobs ran away and the victim watched him go to another gas station. She said she saw him steal a red Chevrolet SUV, which was later found at Chambers and Maxwell, about two miles away.
Police responded to that area after receiving a call about a carjacking where a victim reported a man had pulled a gun on her while she was in her driveway and demanded her car keys. She gave the keys to him and he drove off before leaving the car along the 5500 block of N. Jasper Street, about a mile away. While officers were investigating that carjacking, another witness came up to the responding officers and said somebody had tried to carjack his son's truck, but was unsuccessful, the district attorney's office said.
Finally, at 4:09 p.m., police responded to an armed carjacking call for a Ford truck that was stolen along the 15600 block of E. Randolph. Jacobs crashed about three miles away, near 56th Avenue and Peña Boulevard. A witness was stopped due to the crash and Jacobs used their SUV to drive away before crashing again near 56th Avenue and E-470, the district attorney's office said.
Jacobs, who was seriously injured due to the crash, was transported to a hospital and then booked into jail on multiple charges. Investigators used surveillance video and witness testimony to identify Jacobs as the only suspect in the string of crimes.
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He ultimately pleaded guilty to:
- Second-degree murder
- Violent crime causing death or serious bodily injury
- Aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon (two counts)
- Violent crime - use of a weapon (two counts)
He was sentenced to 85 years in the Department of Corrections.
“For two hours, this defendant’s violent crime spree terrorized innocent people in Aurora and Denver,” Senior Chief Deputy DA Darcy Kofol said. “Killing an innocent father, who was driving his 6-year-old child home from school, in front of his young son over a vehicle is inexcusable. The defendant’s reckless and selfish actions warrant this lengthy sentence behind bars.”
