Colorado supermarket shooting kills several people, including a police officer

A shooting at a supermarket in Colorado killed ten people on Monday, including a police officer, and a suspect was in custody, authorities said.

Boulders Police Chief Maris Herold announced the death toll at a news conference Monday night and fought back tears.

The suspect received medical treatment and there was no further threat to the public, authorities said. Officers had escorted a shirtless man with blood that ran down his leg out of the store in handcuffs, but authorities would not say if he was a suspect.

The officer who was killed was Eric Talley, 51, who had been with the Boulder police since 2010, Herold said.

The victims’ families were still notified so their names were not released, Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty said.

“This is a tragedy and a nightmare for Boulder County, and in response we have the cooperation and assistance of local, state and federal agencies,” Dougherty said.

Yamaguchi said police were still investigating and had no details about the motive for the shooting at the King Soopers store in Boulder, located about 25 miles northwest of Denver and home to the University of Colorado.

Dean Schiller told the Associated Press that he had just left the supermarket when he heard gunshots and saw three people lying face down, two in the parking lot and one near the doorway. He said he “could not tell if they were breathing.”

The video, which was published on YouTube, showed one person on the floor in the store and two others out on the ground. What sounds like two shots is also heard at the beginning of the video.

Police and vehicles gathered outside the store, including SWAT teams, and at least three helicopters landed on the roof. Some windows at the front of the store were broken.

At one point, authorities said over a loudspeaker that the building was surrounded and that “you have to give up.”

Sarah Moonshadow told the Denver Post that two shots rang out shortly after she and her son, Nicolas Edwards, bought strawberries. She said she told her son to go downstairs and then “we just ran.”

Once they got out, she said they saw a body in the parking lot. Edwards said police drove into the party and pulled up next to the body.

“I knew we could not do anything for the guy,” he said. “We had to go.”

James Bentz told the Post that he was in the meat section when he heard what he thought was wrong, then a series of pops.

“I was then in front of a big show,” he said.

Bentz said he jumped out of a loading dock to escape and that younger people helped older people out of it.

One person was taken from the shooting range to Foothills Hospital in Boulder, said Rich Sheehan, a spokeswoman for Boulder Community Health, which runs the hospital.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis tweeted a statement that “his heart breaks when we see this vague event unfold in our Boulder community.”

Police had urged people to protect on the spot in the middle of a report of an “armed, dangerous person” about 5 kilometers from the grocery store, but said at the press conference later that it was not related to the shooting.

The FBI said it was assisting in the investigation at the request of police.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that President Joe Biden had been informed of the shooting.

In a statement, the King Soopers chain offered “thoughts, prayers and support to our employees, customers and the first responders who so bravely responded to this tragic situation. We will continue to cooperate with local law enforcement and our store will remain closed during the police investigation. ”

Kevin Daly, owner of Under the Sun Eatery and Pizzeria Restaurant one block from the supermarket, said he was in his store when he saw police cars arriving and shoppers running from the grocery store. He said he brought in several people to keep them warm, and others boarded a Boulder police bus and were taken away.

(AP)