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Editor’s note: This is a developing story. We will continue to update it as more information becomes available.
Six teens between ages 14 and 18 were taken to Children’s Hospital Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and UCHealth Monday afternoon after a shooting at Nome Park, just north of Aurora Central High School, according to the Aurora Police Department.
During a local briefing several hours after the incident, Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson stated that all six victims, who are all students at Aurora Central High School, suffered non-life threatening injuries. However, a school resource officer did have to apply a tourniquet to a child who was later admitted for emergency surgery at Children’s Hospital. The oldest victim, age 18, walked to UCHealth’s emergency room, located two blocks away from the park.
In a video taken nearby with a smartphone, one victim was heard saying, “I got shot!”
No arrests have been made and any suspects are still at-large in what officials believe to have been a drive-by shooting around 12:45 p.m. Multiple caliber bullets were found scattered across the park. According to Wilson, it is likely that some suspects were on foot. Witnesses on the scene told Fox31 News that they heard 30 to 50 gunshots at the time of the shooting. The Denver Police Gang Unit is currently investigating the scene.
“This is a concerning incident for this city,” Wilson says. “This is a public health crisis when we think about gun violence.” Three previous aggravated assaults occurred at Nome Park earlier this year. In 2019, a man was charged with first-degree murder in a gang-related shooting at the park.
Students at Aurora Central High School, located at 11700 E. 11th Avenue, were released from a controlled lockdown two hours after the incident took place. The shooting did not occur on school grounds; it happened north of the school at 1200 Nome Street.
The Aurora Police Department is asking anyone who might know something about the suspect(s) or the incident to call Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. The reward for anyone with information is up to $2,000.
