For the lazy like me,
" DENVER - Denver Police arrested three people Tuesday morning who they say were part of a theft ring that has been terrorizing metro Denver for more than a month. They say they’re still looking for two or three other suspects.*
"These individuals have been involved in a series of street robberies and burglaries as well as auto theft and an attempted murder," said police department spokesman Sonny Jackson.
7NEWS was on the scene when police arrested the three suspects following a short pursuit.
Security video from the Computer’s House repair shop shows a black KIA SUV roar through the parking lot as it rounds the corner at West Alameda and South Raritan Street.* It is quickly followed by several police cars.
"One of those police cars rear ended the KIA which then t-boned my vehicle,” said a still shaking Bernadette Trujillo. “I was standing two feet away."
Trujillo said she thought about running into the office at Nation's Auto but then had second thoughts.
"I felt like gosh, if I go in there, I'm a caged bird, so I ran and hid behind a couple of the cars because guns were coming out. I didn’t know what to do," she said.
Police say they'd been looking for the suspects for five or six weeks.
They linked them to the theft of a gold colored Honda, which was stolen overnight from the 4500 block of West Alaska Place.
"At 7:00 this morning, there was an attempted*carjacking*near*5th*and Xavier," Jackson said. "So we set up a perimeter from*6th*Avenue to Alameda and from Federal to Sheridan."*
During the search Tuesday morning, police determined that the suspects were in possession of another stolen car, the black KIA.
After spotting the KIA, they gave chase.* The pursuit went eastbound on Alameda to Raritan.
That’s where Trujillo’s car was hit. She told 7NEWS that when she walked back to her car to take pictures of the damage, police told her to get away or they’d arrest her because she was in the crime scene. She says they told her that she was responsible for repairs to her car. That infuriated her.
"They’re the ones who hit the KIA," she said. "The KIA hit my car."
Police say they used a "pit" maneuver to stop the stolen SUV. When asked about Trujillo's close call, Jackson said they will evaluate this pursuit as they do all pursuits. He said that when deciding whether to pursue a vehicle, they weigh the risks with the public’s safety. He noted that one of the suspects was wanted for attempted homicide.
"I understand they have to grab these young kids, or these bad people," Trujillo said. "I understand that, but they have to consider us."
Trujillo said she will look at filing a claim for the damage to her car with the city.
Police tweeted that they found the stolen Honda near*11th*and Mariposa around 2 p.m., but there was no sign of the suspects who are still at-large.
-- Police search other locations --
While searching the for remaining suspects, Lakewood and Denver police surrounded a two-story apartment building on West 13th Avenue near Reed Street in Lakewood, but eventually left the scene without detaining anyone.
On South Lowell Boulevard near West Cedar Avenue in Denver, a 7NEWS crew saw officers take five juveniles into custody, but they soon released them.
-- Denver Public Schools on modified lockdown --
While students were off Tuesday, staff members at Denver Public Schools were not.* Valverde, Castro, Munroe, Barnum, Newlon and Knapp Elementary Schools and Kepner Middle School were placed on modified lockdown.
Modified lockdown means while activity is normal inside the school, no one is allowed in or out of the buildings.
Here is the list of robberies that police believe are linked to the suspects who were arrested today.
1/24/2014 **1500 N Knox Ct. Denver CO Street
1/24/2014 **2200 N Lowell Blvd. Denver CO Street
1/24/2014 **1700 N Wolff St. Denver CO Street
1/25/2014 ***900 N Vrain St. Denver CO Street
1/29/2014 ***800 S Lowell Blvd. Denver CO Street
1/29/2014 **1100 N Galapago St. Denver CO Street
1/29/2014 **1100 W 13th Ave. Denver CO Street
1/29/2014 **3100 W Vallejo St. Denver CO Car Jack
1/29/2014 ****200 S Osceola St. Denver CO Street
1/30/2014 **1200 S Broadway St. Denver CO Street
1/30/2014 ****200 S Washington St. Denver CO Street
1/30/2014 **3400 W 38th Ave. Denver CO Street
2/5/2014 ****1701 E Evans Ave. Denver CO Street
2/9/2014 ***4498 N Sheridan Blvd. Denver CO Corner Store
2/9/2014 ***2790 S Wadsworth Blvd. Denver CO 7-11"
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