View Larger Map
On November 12, a woman was stabbed at a bus stop near the intersection of West Colfax Avenue and Winona Court, an area captured in the graphic above (if you have problems seeing the image, click "View Larger Map"). Afterward, the Denver Police Department linked this case to other similar incidents along the West Colfax corridor -- and now, they think they've got their man.
Leonard Allen Snyder, 27, is being held on $100,000 bail for the November 12 attack, and police are hoping to connect him to previous stabbings as well. Meanwhile, the arrest affidavit provides details about the collection of evidence leading to the bust that sound as if they were plucked from an episode of Law and Order.
Detective Stephanie Meadow was among the officers responding to the November 12 assault, which the victim compared to a "jail house stabbing" because "the blows were a surprise and came very fast," the affidavit states. The next day, she and a co-worker, Detective Sergeant Trujillo, returned to the scene to canvas the area in an attempt to "locate any additional evidence or witnesses."
They soon found Mario Garcia-Astorga, who was collecting cans from dumpsters. Here's what happened next:
Garcia-Storga explained to Sergeant Trujillo that he had not seen the assault occur or the suspect but he had seen a knife lying on the bottom of a dumpster. Garcia-Astorga was transported by Sergeant Trujillo and Your Affiant to the area where he had seen the knife. Garcia-Astorgia directed officers to the 1400 block North Vrain Street/Winona Court alley and pointed to a dumpster. Inside of the dumpster was a black knife with the blade folded into the handle. The listed alley was the same alley the suspect had fled down after the assault.Sergeant Walt Greene 91068 from the Crime Laboratory Bureau responded to the scene and photographed the alley, dumpster and knife. The knife was recovered from the dumpster and again photographed. Upon opening the blade, there was visible blood and fiber on the blade.
Analysis followed, and "Your Affiant learned that the knife blade tested positive for human blood and the knife handle was positive for cellular material. The blade of the knife gave a single source female DNA profile matching the victim. The handle of the knife gave a DNA mixture with a major source male DNA profile that matched to Colorado convicted offender Leonard Snyder." Cue trademark L&O you're-busted sound.
