See also: Photos: Michael Hancock Inauguration Celebration at Denver Botanic Gardens
The news release sent out by the Fort Collins Police Department this past Friday made no note of the younger Hancock. Rather, the announcement simply stated that on October 3, FCPD personnel, assisted by Denver police officers, busted another nineteen-year-old, Denver resident Eddie Johnson, in connection with Robinson's shooting.That crime is said to have occurred during the early morning hours of September 28 in Fort Collins near the intersection of Avocet Road and Eagle Drive in Fort Collins, an area captured in the following interactive graphic. If you have problems seeing the image, click "View Larger Map."
View Larger Map
The release notes that Johnson and Robinson are acquaintances who were in the same car at the time of the shooting. Johnson was subsequently booked into Denver County Jail on suspicion of second-degree assault.
So far, so simple. But the situation detailed in a police report obtained by 7News describes a much more complicated situation.
The warrant notes that multiple 911 calls came in at around 2:42 a.m. on the 28th. Dialers said that they'd heard "suh woop" chants associated with the Bloods street gang from those gathered nearby -- and there were plenty of them. As many as one-hundred people are said to have congregated on the street, with some of them allegedly having gotten into a beef with the occupants of an SUV before shots rang out.
Afterward, the SUV, driven by Rashaun Marshall, left the area and headed to a nearby hospital. The affidavit says Robinson was laying out the back window of the vehicle. He'd been shot in the back of the head, although the wound didn't prove to be fatal. On Sunday, his father shared the following photo, taken at the hospital during the Broncos-Cardinals game and obtained by 7News:
Along with Robinson and Marshall, the other passengers are identified as Eddie Johnson, Detrevyonne Johnson, Kashief Berrien and Hancock. The latter five all insisted no one in the SUV had a gun and maintained that the shot had come from outside. However, one of ten occupants in a second SUV that had followed the ride driven by Marshall said he thought the shots had come from inside the vehicle -- and that's the theory investigators came to believe, too. Continue for more about the shooting witnessed by Jordan Hancock, including additional photos and a video. Other evidence against Johnson is said to include a Facebook post sent to him afterward that reads in part, "man how you gonna shoot your own homie. LMAO #N*****ShootingWitTheyEyesClose." Other witnesses quote Johnson as having declared "And that's on the Crips, cuz" as the SUV was driving away from the shooting scene and say an unknown person in the vehicle announced, "You shot him, you dumbass."Moreover, Johnson had allegedly been seen with a gun earlier -- and a gat was subsequently located in a yard on Eagle drive wrapped in a blue bandanna. Other bandannas were found in the SUV.
At this writing, no charges have been filed against Jordan or anyone else for offering false information to the police, and Mayor Hancock's office is trying to downplay the involvement of the teen, who's currently attending college in Atlanta. A statement reads:Jordan is shaken by this incident, as any teenager would be. He provided a full statement to the FCPD. He has headed back to school in Atlanta and will continue helping with the investigation as a witness to the event. The Hancock family is heartbroken by this terrible incident and hopes and prays Jalen Robinson will recover quickly and that the case comes to a swift resolution.The implication: Jordan was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. And given the references to rival street gangs, it's hard to argue with that.
Here's the 7News report about the incident.
Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
