Fake hostage situation led to Denver police's concern for a woman's life and police shooting
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A string of connected crimes, including an alleged road rage shooting, kidnapping, second shooting, crash, police shooting and fake hostage situation led to six arrests in Denver last week.
Two of the arrests were in connection with the crimes from that day, while the other four were unrelated arrest warrants and a parole violation.
What initially started as a road rage shooting on Interstate 25 would eventually lead police on a chase, which ended with a vehicle crash. A suspect appeared to drag a woman out of the disabled vehicle in a hostage situation, leading police to believe her life was in danger and shoot the suspect. Police would later learn the hostage scenario was planned.
Matt Clark, commander of the Denver Police Department's Major Crimes Division, provided specific details about what happened on the evening of Aug. 25, prefacing the timeline by explaining that “this is a complex case that involves multiple incidents, individuals and locations.”
He said it all started around 5:30 p.m., when a driver called to report that he had been traveling northbound on I-25 between 6th Avenue and Colfax Avenue when a driver began tailgating him, so he moved to another lane. The driver of the other vehicle pulled alongside him and fired a gun at the man's car, shattering the rear passenger window. Nobody was injured in this incident, Clark said.
The victim driver called 911 and followed the suspect along northbound I-25, despite dispatch telling him to pull over and wait for officers. The man eventually lost sight of the suspect vehicle around E. 45th Ave and Josephine Street, Clark said.
This suspect driver was later identified as Julio Cesar Solomon Madera, 33.
Denver police responded to the area to look for the suspect vehicle, and ended up finding it unoccupied next to a residence along the 4700 block of Josephine Street. Officers noticed that people inside the residence were peeking around the blinds, but they refused to answer the door, Clark said.
At 6:45 p.m., a tow truck arrived to impound the vehicle.
The uniformed officers left the area, however undercover officers in unmarked vehicles monitored the home to see if the road rage suspect was inside.
Around 11 p.m., an undercover officer saw a red truck — with a male driver and female passenger — pull up to the residence and two people — another male and female — left the home and got into the truck, Clark said. The driver then headed southbound on Josephine Street.
Uniformed officers attempted to stop the driver, but he accelerated around police vehicles, hitting a marked DPD vehicle and a tree before turning westbound on E. 47th Avenue and then southbound on York Street.
Clark said they would later learn that the male passenger, who was ultimately identified as Keith Michael Mosley, 35, had spotted police following the car and pulled a firearm on the driver of the truck, demanding he keep going, Clark said.
“Seconds later, officers heard multiple gunshots being fired at them from the truck," Clark said. "Officers pursued the vehicle with their emergency equipment activated for approximately one minute and 20 seconds. During that time, the driver made no effort to stop.”
Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas explained later that officers decided to continue the chase because it was late at night and there was no pedestrian or vehicle traffic in the area.