A former Colorado state trooper has been charged with felony menacing in a case that prosecutors said involved a man pointing a rifle at a person in another vehicle, authorities said Thursday.
Wesley Dakan, 44, was put on paid leave after the Colorado State Patrol was notified about the allegations by Denver police in the April 25 incident and fired on Tuesday after an internal affairs investigation, the patrol said in a statement.
A telephone message left after hours for Dakan’s attorney was not immediately returned.
Earlier in the day, the Denver District Attorney’s Office announced that two felony menacing charges had been filed against an off-duty law enforcement officer. But the office did not name him or provide details about what he is accused of doing because it said it was still trying to identify witnesses in the case. Dakan was the officer prosecutors were referring to, Master Trooper Gary Cutler, a spokesperson for the state patrol, said.
The announcement of the charges came in a news release urging witnesses to come forward. The release also said the office was withholding details in the case to preserve its integrity as it works to find witnesses.
“We do not know who the victims are who this officer allegedly menaced, we’re trying to identify them so they can identify the former officer in this case,” Carolyn Tyler, a spokesperson, for the district attorney’s office, told The Denver Post.
More details would be released before the officer’s next court date later this month, the office said.
According to online court records, Dakan was listed as in custody at the Denver jail on April 28 and released on a pledge to appear at future court dates.
A tweet from the state patrol’s Golden office said Dakan was recognized by the Golden Elks Lodge for taking 35 impaired drivers off the road last year.