A 34-year-old man was arrested Thursday morning after police say he fatally shot a woman during an active shooter situation at an apartment complex in Broomfield.
The man, whose name was not immediately released, was shot by police and seriously wounded during a four-hour standoff at the Arista Flats apartments on Central Court. Charges have not yet been filed against him.
The name and age of the woman killed in the shooting also hasn’t been released.
Officers were called to the scene at about 6:30 a.m. on reports of a disturbance. When they arrived, they heard a man making threats, followed by gunshots.
“He was shooting not only at surrounding units, but also into the parking lot,” Rachel Haslett, a spokesperson for the Broomfield Police Department, said at a midmorning news conference. “That’s why we called it an active shooter situation.”
“The surrounding area is NOT SAFE,” Broomfield police posted on social media at about 8 a.m. “Shots are still being fired.”
Police posted on social media around 9:30 a.m. that “the situation HAS NOT been resolved.” About 15 minutes later, people at the scene heard a burst of loud booms, which sounded like gunshots.
At 10:12 a.m., Broomfield police said “the scene is now secure.” That’s just after officers breached the apartment where the suspect and his victim were, Haslett said.
One Broomfield police officer fired their gun during the breach. Authorities said several law enforcement officers fired their weapons during the standoff.
Multiple law enforcement officers sustained minor injuries during the standoff and were treated by medical personnel and released.
Authorities were asking people in the area to shelter in place during the shooting and hostage situation. Police said some limited evacuations were done.
The Arista Flats apartments are just south of U.S. 36, near the old 1stBank Center. There are several apartment complexes in the area.
Images captured by a television news helicopter that flew over the Arista Flats apartments showed a swarm of first responders in the area, including some carrying rifles and wearing tactical gear.
Police said a SWAT team, crisis negotiators and law enforcement officers from surrounding jurisdictions were on scene.
Kayla Leavitt, who works at the pizza shop across the street from the apartment complex, said one of her servers heard as many as 20 gunshots.
“There’s like 50 cop cars over there,” she said. “They are going in shields up right now.”
Jefferson Academy, a nearby school, was on secure status, meaning that its doors were locked and no one was allowed in or out of the building.
