On Nov. 24 at approximately 10:30 a.m., a stolen Ford F150 pickup truck was spotted by an Aurora police officer in an area just east of the Denver / Aurora City limits.
The pickup truck was driving westbound on East Colfax Avenue when the officer maneuvered his marked patrol car behind the stolen truck. In order to conduct additional investigation, the officer activated the emergency equipment (lights and siren) and waited for the driver to pull over to the side of the roadway.
Instead of yielding, the driver of the stolen truck continued westbound on East Colfax Avenue. At Yosemite Street (border between the city of Aurora and the City of Denver), the driver turned left and drove south. It was near this intersection that the officer determined that the driver of the truck did not intend to stop. The officer disengaged from the stolen truck and de-activated his emergency equipment.
The driver of the stolen truck continued driving on Yosemite Street before attempting to negotiate a westbound turn into Denver on East 13
th Avenue (13
th Avenue is a one-way street for traffic heading west into Denver). The truck failed to complete the turn and instead, drove off the roadway and into a multi-level, multi-family apartment building located in the 8800 block of E. 13
th Avenue, Denver. A portion of the truck entered an apartment, but thankfully, the residents inside were not injured.
Both the driver and passenger in the truck were transported to a local hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
The 16-year-old driver of the stolen pickup truck is not being identified by police due to his age. After he receives treatment, he will be taken into custody and held for bond in connection with Felony Eluding andsecond-degree motor vehicle theft (previously reported asfirst-degree aggravated motor vehicle theft). Investigating officers are considering other additional charges at this time.
The passenger, who is an adult male, was not initially charged by police in connection with this incident.
Subsequent investigation has revealed that the pickup truck was reported stolen yesterdayNov. 23from the City of Denver.