Birthday Party Ends With Gunshots
A birthday party in a Colorado Springs neighborhood ends in violence. According to police that violence may be the result of rival gangs.
It all started when a 16-year old boy decided to invite some friends over to celebrate his upcoming birthday. He asked KRDO-TV not to use his name, so we will refer to him as John.
?We had about 15, probably 20 close ones (friends),? said John. ?(My) birthday?s coming up, so I just wanted, you know, just to have friends over. Just have a little fun.?
John said gatherings at his house are regular occurrences. ?We just do little get-togethers every weekend,? said John. ?(We) just listen to music and have fun. Nothing crazy ever happens, so this is kind of like, new for us.?
Just after midnight John said an argument started in front of his house in the 800 block of Zion Drive. ?Everybody was leaving the party and some red trailblazer just came flying down the street (and) stopped in the middle and two guys got out and started shooting.?
?I just heard gun shots,? said John. ?(There were) probably about close to twenty. Everybody (was) just screaming and yelling and then cars driving off.?
Police arrived shortly after.
?It was probably 30 to 40 people fighting outside that residence,? said Colorado Springs police Sgt. Roger Vargason.
According to police a man got out of the Chevy Trailblazer and shot at a juvenile standing in front of the house. That teen was not injured.
?We were able to find numerous shell casings from numerous guns and we were also able to find evidence that this was probably gang related,? said Vargason. ?There was just indications that there were probably different sets.?
Vargason explained the reasoning for the possibility of gang involvement. ?There was probably gang attire that the officers identified as different sets.?
?Most of the people at the party were not cooperative with us and obviously they make our investigations difficult because they will not help us with information.?
One teen was taken to the hospital after being grazed by a bullet. Another juvenile also received minor unknown injuries.
John denied knowing any of the victims or suspects. However, he did offer a description of the apparent shooters.
John described one of the suspects as a white male. ?He’s about five nine, just average height,? said John. ?He had a hoodie on, so I couldn’t really see his face.?
John said the other man appeared to be a bald Hispanic man. Police have not released suspect descriptions.
Anyone with additional information about the incident is asked to contact Colorado Springs police at 444-7000.
