Denver police are investigating at least five different cases of sniper-style shooting at downtown residential towers since May, gunfire that shattered windows and unnerved residents — but hasn’t resulted in any reported injuries.
Investigators said links between the shots fired at downtown buildings have not been established. They’re also looking at any potential connections to a Broomfield shooting over the weekend that led to an arrest.
“The Denver Police Department is taking these cases seriously, understands the safety concerns of the residents, and investigators are following up on significant leads identified through our investigation to identify the suspect, determine a motive and hold the offender accountable,” police officials said in a statement to The Denver Post.
Beyond the upscale Beauvallon building where at least five shots were fired on June 14 and July 4, Denver police also are investigating shootings that broke glass at the One Lincoln Park building, 2001 Lincoln St., in May and again from a street near that building on June 14.
And police are investigating a reported shooting at the Radius Uptown Apartments, 1935 Logan St., on July 4, a Denver police spokesman confirmed Wednesday.
Meanwhile, in Broomfield District Court, prosecutors formally charged Kenneth Fairchild, 45, with a multitude of counts Wednesday, including attempted first-degree murder, following his arrest after he allegedly fired shots from a rifle Saturday at three people eating on a patio at Jus Burritos in Broomfield.
Fairchild faces charges related to incidents that occurred on Saturday in Broomfield, Arvada, Thornton, Commerce City and unincorporated Adams County — including arson, possession of a weapon by a previous offender, illegal firing a gun, violation of a protection order, driving under the influence and reckless endangerment.
Connection to Denver shootings?
Broomfield and Denver police this week said they are collaborating, along with police from other agencies, in an investigation of whether Fairchild may have been responsible for shooting at buildings in Denver.
A light-colored Toyota Prius with blue markings photographed in Broomfield also appears similar to a Prius seen in a video that shows a man firing a rifle upward at a building in downtown Denver.
A man fitting Fairchild’s description on Saturday threw a rock through a residential window, and when residents confronted him outside, he “told them to stop monitoring” him before leaving in a Prius, according to a Broomfield arrest affidavit.
Outside Jus Burritos in the early afternoon, patrons watched as the man identified as Fairchild got out of a Prius, reached into the trunk for a rifle, and fired a single shot at three people eating on the patio, the arrest affidavit said. “All three victims dove onto the ground for cover and were not hit,” investigators wrote.
The bullet lodged inches from a front window, the affidavit said. “Had it gone through the window it would have potentially caused death or serious injury to any of the eight people inside the business,” Broomfield police wrote.
When Broomfield police arrested him with a Winchester bolt-action rifle, they found seven .22-caliber long-range bullets in his pocket, smelled alcohol, found drugs that tested positive as amphetamines, and heard him ask the following question, according to the affidavit. “Have you heard of remote neural monitoring?”
“People are fed up”
The shootings at buildings have unsettled residents, and building managers have been trying to keep them apprised and coordinate swift window repairs.
“Just before 5 p.m. a panel of balcony glass broke, cause unknown, the owner was not home. Police are being notified of this incident. Between 6 and 8 p.m. an exterior panel of glass was broken in a different unit. Police were called. The cause was determined to be a bullet from street level,” One Lincoln Park’s manager wrote in a May 9 emailed notice to building residents.
On June 14, the manager sent out another notice that “this evening there were gunshots directed at the building and a panel of balcony glass was broken on the northwest corner of the building. Thank goodness no one was injured. There were some eyewitnesses and they are giving statements to the police. If you have additional information, please contact DPD.”
At the Radius Uptown Apartments, a bullet fired on July 4 broke glass and hit a wall behind a couch where nobody was sitting. Residents have been consoling one another over an online portal, suggesting that building managers ensure better protection. A building manager declined to comment Wednesday, saying company policy bars discussion with journalists.
“People are fed up with not feeling secure in their homes and neighborhoods and are at a loss to understand why the powers that be are struggling to get control of homelessness, open drug use, crime and violence. There is hope that a new mayor and new council members will be more aggressive in policing,” One Lincoln Park resident Erin Ennis said.
“How do I feel about living in an area where gunshots are not infrequent? I am not afraid, though we did think twice about inviting 30 people to come to watch the Rockies fireworks show. It does make me hesitant to purchase until I know the safety issues are being addressed.”
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