Shooting in Colorado: Boulder police officer was the last person killed in the grocery store massacre, officials say

Shooting in Colorado: Boulder police officer was the last person killed in the grocery store massacre, officials say

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And no one – except that officer, Eric Talley – was shot after he and other officers began to engage the sniper in the King Soopers store after witnesses called 911, Boulder police said.

The Boulder police made the comments on Twitter, responding to what it said were “comments from some in our community who questioned the response time of our officers”.

“We think it’s important to share that Officer Talley led a police contact team at the store within 30 seconds of arriving at the location,” said the department. tweet reads.
“The suspect then shot the officers, killing Officer Talley and shooting the officers until he was taken into custody. No other individuals were shot or killed after these brave officers involved the suspect,” says the department. read.
The tweets do not say when the 911 calls started and when the police arrived at the store. The police said earlier that the officers were dispatched around 2:40 pm on Monday, and that the officers arrived “in minutes”.
An armed man opened fire inside and outside the supermarket that afternoon, killing 10 people – including Talley, store employees and customers – while several others fled or hid.
A suspect, Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, from the Arvada suburb of Denver, was arrested at the store that afternoon – with a gunshot wound to the leg – after an exchange of fire with the police, officials said.
The policeman killed in the Boulder supermarket shooting was the father of 7 children
Alissa was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and one attempted murder. The attempted murder alleges that Alissa shot another police officer, according to court documents.
The county district attorney said that in the “next few weeks” he expects to present more charges of attempted murder, stemming from charges that Alissa shot at other officers.

Police said they were still trying to determine the reason for the shooting.

The dead on Monday were: Talley, 51; store manager Rikki Olds, 25; store employee Denny Stong, 20; store employee Teri Leiker, 51; Neven Stanisic, 23; Tralona “Lonna” Bartkowiak, 49; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; and Jody Waters, 65.
A procession of emergency vehicles leads a hearse carrying the body of Officer Eric Talley in Boulder on Wednesday.

The suspect passed a background check when buying a gun, says the store owner

Alissa passed a background check before buying the gun used in the massacre, the owner of a Colorado gun store said on Friday.
Alissa used a Ruger AR-556 in the shootings, and he bought it on March 16, days before the massacre, a senior police source previously told CNN on condition of anonymity.

“We are absolutely shocked by what happened and our hearts are broken for the victims and families that have been left behind,” John Mark Eagleton, owner of the Eagles Nest Armory in Arvada, said in a statement.

The gun shop will continue to cooperate fully “with investigators, Eagleton said.

Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, made his first appearance in court on Thursday in Boulder.

“Ensuring that all sales that occur in our store are legal, have always been and always will be the highest priority for our business,” said the statement.

“With respect to the firearm in question, a background check of the buyer was conducted as required by Colorado law and approval for the sale was provided by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.”

Nothing in the federal system would have prevented Alissa from going through a background check and buying a firearm, a police source had previously told CNN.

The suspect pleaded guilty to a third-degree assault misdemeanor charge in 2018 after attacking a schoolmate a year earlier, according to court documents and a police report. He was sentenced to one year of probation, 48 hours of community service and rabies response treatment, court documents say.

– Why that King Soopers? Why Boulder? Why Monday? ‘

Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty said on Friday that the reason for the violence continues to elude investigators.

“I think the victims’ families and the community are desperate to find out why,” he told reporters. “We want to know why. And that will be the focus of our efforts in the future. It remains to be seen whether or not we are able to determine that.”

Boulder Police used the handcuffs of the murdered officer to formally place the suspect in custody

Boulder’s chief of police, Maris Herold, said, “Why that King Soopers? Why Boulder? Why Monday? Unfortunately, at this point, we still don’t have those answers.”

At Alissa’s first appearance in court on Thursday, one of her defense lawyers asked a judge to delay the next hearing for weeks because the defense needs time to assess what she called her client’s mental illness.
The lawyer gave no further details. However, investigators have been examining possible mental health issues in the case, a law enforcement official informed about the investigation previously told CNN on condition of anonymity.
Alissa’s brother also told CNN earlier this week that Alissa may be suffering from a mental illness.

The presiding judge, Thomas F. Mulvahill, agreed to schedule the next hearing in “about 60 to 90 days”.

Suspect emerged from county jail after threats

Alissa was removed from the county jail after police learned of “threats to him” from other inmates, a prison official told CNN.

He was relocated on Wednesday morning, according to Jeff Goetz, Chief of the Boulder County Jail Division.

Alissa never had direct contact with the inmates and was not injured, but other inmates asked about him and made threats, according to Goetz. These questions were addressed to other officers.

CNN’s Travis Caldwell, Samira Said, Ray Sanchez, Keith Allen and Konstantin Toropin contributed to this report.

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