Weekend violence leaves 6 men shot in Aurora

AURORA | Aurora police are looking into what precipitated an injurious weekend that left six people shot and wounded in the city between Friday and Monday morning.

The violent flurry began early Friday morning when investigators said a man incurred “serious injuries” after being shot at 3202 Peoria St., according to a tweet sent at 7:34 a.m. Aug. 13. No additional details on the man’s injuries or possible suspects was released.

The following evening, another man was shot in the foot in a parking lot beside El Muelle Mexican Restaurant at 475 Sable Blvd., according to a tweet. Police believe a Hispanic man fired the rounds, and the man who was shot is expected to live, authorities said. No arrests had been made as of Saturday night, though a gun was found at the restaurant.

At about the same time on Saturday, two additional men were shot near 13900 E. Vassar Ave., police wrote on Twitter. Both men are expected to survive their gunshot wounds, but one man sustained “serious injuries,” police said. No arrests have been made, but a gun was found in the area, according to Officer Matt Longshore, spokesperson for the Aurora Police Department.

About five hours later, yet another man was shot near 15120 E. Hampden Ave. He also suffered “serious injuries,” but he is expected to survive. No one has been arrested in connection with the incident.

A sixth man was injured with a firearm in the 9800 block of East Montview Boulevard at about 1 a.m. Aug. 16 when he was shot in the foot, according to a tweet. He is expected to live, though no suspect information was released.

Anyone who may have any information related to these shootings is encouraged to call the Denver Metro Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous and be eligible for rewards up to $2,000.

Also over the weekend, a man riding a motorcycle died after striking a guard rail and crashing near the intersection fo East 40th Avenue and Peña Boulevard, according to a news release. No other vehicles were involved in the fatal collision.

And on Sunday afternoon, detectives found the body of a dead man in the 22600 block of East Glidden Drive. It’s unclear when the man died and how long his body had been in the area. No additional information on the man’s identity of his cause of death was released. The Douglas County Coroner is expected to identify the person following an autopsy in the coming days.

Crime in Aurora was up about 30 percent in the first six months of 2021 when compared to the same time last year, according to Aurora police statistics. When stripping out burglary, larceny and car theft — the latter of which is up some 90% in the city year over year — violent crimes like assault, robbery and murder are up 15.4% through the end of beginning of August.

There have been 285 more aggravated assault victims in the city, which is how non-fatal shootings are often categorized in statistics, in the first eight months of 2021 than in the same time last year. More than 1,550 aggravated assaults have been reported in Aurora between Jan. 1 and Aug. 1.