Olde Town Arvada Shooting Video Released, Friendly-Fire Death Verified

Police say the shooter was killed by Johnny Hurley.

June 25, 2021

Gunman Ronald Troyke holding an automatic weapon after shooting and killing police officer Gordon Beesley, as seen in a video just released by the Arvada Police Department. Arvada Police Department via YouTube

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Late on the afternoon of Friday, June 25, shortly after the arrival of a statement from shooting victim Johnny Hurley's family asking for an end to speculation about the cause of his death, the Arvada Police Department released the most detailed account to date of the June 21 attack in Olde Town Arvada, in which police officer Gordon Beesley and gunman Ronald Troyke were also killed, as well as a video of the incident.

The police account reveals that Troyke killed Beesley with a twelve-gauge shotgun, after which he went back to his truck and retrieved an AR-15 automatic weapon. In addition, it confirms that Hurley shot Troyke with a pistol, then apparently picked up the gunman's AR-15, at which point he was shot by an Arvada police officer.

Continue to read the complete release and to see the video, which includes comments from Arvada Police Chief Link Strate.

Arvada Police Department release:

In an effort to be transparent with our community we want to provide the below timeline of events of June 21, 2021.

• 12:49pm — The suspect’s brother calls asking for a welfare check because his brother was going to “do something crazy.”
• 1:08pm — Officer Beesley and another Arvada PD Officer attempted to contact the suspect at his residence, to check his welfare as requested. They are unable to make contact with him, and clear from the call for service at 1:18pm.
• 1:17pm — Dispatch receives a suspicious person call in the Olde Town Square.
• 1:30pm — Officer Beesley is dispatched to the suspicious person call, arriving at the Olde Town Square at 1:31pm.
• Officer Beesley parked on Webster Street and walked through an alley toward the Olde Town Square.
• As Officer Beesley walked westbound, the suspect pulled into the area in a truck and parked behind him.
• The suspect got out of his truck with a 12 gauge semi-automatic shotgun, ran after Officer Beesley and yelled at him.
• Officer Beesley stopped, turned and immediately was shot twice by the suspect.
• Officer Beesley did not reach for his gun and takes no defensive action — he simply turns in response to the suspect who then shoots and kills him.
• The suspect then shot out the windows of patrol cars parked in the area and into the air.
• The suspect ran back to his truck and retrieved an AR-15.
• The suspect ran back towards the Olde Town Square with the long gun, where he was confronted by Mr. Hurley.
• Mr. Hurley then shot the suspect with a handgun.
• A responding Arvada Police Officer then encountered Mr. Hurley, who was holding the suspect’s AR-15. The officer shot him.

Further investigation revealed the following:

Arvada PD investigators recovered a document written by the suspect which contained the following statements:

• “My goal today is to kill Arvada PD officers”
• “We the people were never your enemy, but we are now”
• “This is what you get, you are the people who are expendable”
• “Hundreds of you pigs should be killed daily”
• “Today I will kill as many Arvada officers as I possibly can”
• “I just hope I don’t die without killing any of you pigs”

The suspect goes on to express that this is his way of holding law enforcement accountable.

The APD would like to highlight the following:

Mr. Hurley is a hero. He saved numerous lives to include civilians and other Arvada Police Officers. The Arvada Police Department understands and appreciates the public’s interest in the events that resulted in the tragic loss of Officer Gordon Beesley and the hero Johnny Hurley. We want to be clear that although these two deaths unfolded as part of the same incident, they are being investigated separately.

Arvada PD is handling the investigation into Officer Beesley's death. Colorado law mandates that a multi-agency Critical Incident Response Team (or "CIRT") investigates Mr. Hurley's death. The CIRT investigation is being conducted by skilled, independent investigators under the authority of District Attorney Alexis King. These experienced CIRT investigators are working tirelessly through a deliberate and meticulous process to determine all of the facts surrounding Mr. Hurley's death with certainty.

Arvada PD is not a part of the CIRT investigation into Mr. Hurley's death. As a law enforcement agency, we must protect the independence and integrity of this complex and ongoing investigation as witnesses continue to be interviewed and evidence collected.

Arvada PD views Mr. Hurley's actions as heroic; it is clear that he intervened in an active shooting that unfolded quickly in a busy commercial area in the middle of the day, and that he did so without hesitation. Mr. Hurley's actions certainly saved others from serious injury or death.

Finally, it is clear that the suspect bears responsibility for this tragic sequence of events. To protect the investigation, and consistent with CIRT protocols and applicable legal and ethical rules, Arvada PD will not comment further on the CIRT investigation until after it has been completed.

At District Attorney King's request, all media or other inquiries about the CIRT investigation should be directed to her office.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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