Police make arrest in former Springs firefighter’s death
El Paso County detectives believe they have arrested the man responsible for the shooting death of a former Colorado Springs firefighter.
Gustavo Torres-Gonzales, 43, was arrested on May 22 in the Black Forest area.
Detectives say he was injured while resisting arrest, and he remains in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Following his release, expected on Wednesday, Torres-Gonzalez will be taken to jail on murder charges.
He is accused of shooting and killing Daryl Ritz on May 16 inside a home on Judge Orr Road in the Falcon area.
Detectives won’t release further details about how they linked him to the crime.
READ MORE: El Paso County homicide victim identified as former firefighter
Officials think that after shooting Ritz, Torres-Gonzales walked to the area of the Safeway Supermarket located at 7655 McLaughlin Road. He may have been wearing dark pants and possibly a gray or red jacket.
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in placing Torres-Gonzales in the area where Ritz was killed.
Anyone who lives in the area bordered by Highway 24 to the southeast, Judge Orr Road and Meridian Ranch Boulevard to the north, Eastonville Road to the west and 7566 McLaughlin Road to the south is asked to call the sheriff’s office if you saw someone matching the suspect’s description on May 16.
The sheriff’s office is also asking people who live in the area and have surveillance cameras to check their video from May 16.
It is also believed that the victim’s cell phone was stolen following the murder. Phone records indicate that it was taken to the Black Forest and Shoup Road area. If you have recently found an iPhone 6 in that area, you are asked to notify the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
The news comes as hope for justice for Ritz’s family but not closure.
” I’ve lost a brother. He was a father, he’s a son, a husband. And to be taken away from the community and still had more to give is a tragedy for us all,” said Brian Ritz, his brother. “We’ll never let him be forgotten.”
