The Aurora Police Department hasn't released the names of two other people in the apartment who were said to have been wounded during the incident. According to APD spokesman Detective Bob Friel, the department has a policy against identifying victims.
Presumably, that could change if these two individuals are charged with a crime -- and the initial APD release stated that the burglars in question believed the residents were medical marijuana providers. If this proves to be true, and if they were cultivating on a large scale (as opposed to a caregiver growing under the provisions of Amendment 20), such an operation could be illegal, since Aurora has a ban against MMJ businesses in place. However, Friel says these specifics continue to be under investigation, and he doesn't anticipate being able to issue more info before tomorrow.
Friel does confirm that the victims were taken to the south campus of the Medical Center of Aurora. However, a hospital spokeswoman says the medical center cannot release the individuals' names, their conditions or even if they remain hospitalized.
That leaves us with the aforementioned APD press release from last week. It's reproduced below, along with an interactive graphic showing the area near the scene; if you have problems seeing the image, click "View Larger Map." Below that, find our earlier coverage, written by Jonathan Shikes.
Aurora Police Department press release, March 31:
Two Dead; Two Wounded by GunfireAurora, Colo. -- Shortly before 3:00 p.m. this afternoon, Aurora Police responded to reports that multiple parties had been shot at a condominium in the 900 block of S Dearborn Way.
Officers arrived on scene and discovered four total victims. Two males were pronounced dead on scene. A male and female, who are believed to be the residents, also sustained gunshot wounds and were transported to a local hospital. A toddler was also inside, but was not injured.
Major Crime Unit/Homicide detectives and Crime Scene Investigators responded to the scene and are in the preliminary stages of the investigation. Early indications are that the two males came to the location because they believed that the resident was a medical marijuana provider. This information is actively being investigated. It is unclear this early in the investigation what the males' motive was when they came to the home.
Identities of parties involved are not being released at this time. We are not anticipating any further updates until Friday afternoon at the earliest.
Anyone with information on this case is asked to call Detective Gretchen Fronapfel at 303-739-6013.
View Larger Map
Original item, 4:01 p.m. April 1: There was more violence in Aurora yesterday.
Two men were shot and killed and two others, a man and a woman, were injured yesterday afternoon at a condo in the 900 block of South Dearborn Way.
The injured victims, who are believed to be the residents, were taken to a hospital and treated for gunshot wounds. A toddler inside the condo was not hurt.
Aurora police believe the residence was home to a medical marijuana provider, but didn't provide any other details. None of the indentities have been released. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Gretchen Fronapfel at 303-739-6013.
Find other crime stories in our Mile High Murder archive.
