A couple hiking in Colorado were held at gunpoint during an alleged kidnapping attempt before managing to escape, authorities said.
The husband and wife were walking on a trail near Bear Creek Lake Park in Lakewood, in the Denver metro area, around 8 a.m. Friday when they passed a man tying his shoe who then pulled out a gun, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
“The suspect had something that’s been described to me like either a leash or a rope, put that around the woman’s neck and led them away from the trailhead,” Jacki Kelley, spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, told reporters.
Another hiker who witnessed the incident called 911 and stayed on the phone describing what was happening while waiting for authorities to arrive, Kelley said.
Before deputies responded, the husband was able to get the firearm away from the suspect, Kelley said.
A husband and wife were held a gunpoint in an alleged kidnapping while hiking near Bear Creek Lake Park in Jefferson County, Colorado, June 17, 2022, authorities said.
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Once on the scene, deputies located the victims and the suspect, who then allegedly pulled out a weapon later determined to be a Taser, Kelley said. One deputy fired his gun, missing the suspect, while a second deputy struck the suspect with his Taser, according to Kelley.
The suspect, who is not being identified at this time, was taken into custody and is being treated at the hospital for injuries likely related to the Taser, Kelley said.
The sheriff’s office is investigating the incident as a felony menacing and kidnapping.
Jacki Kelley, public information officer with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, gives a briefing on June 17, 2022.
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“This is alarming, there is no question about it,” said Kelley. “We have two victims who are shaken up and a witness who is pretty upset about what he witnessed this morning.”
Investigators are determining whether the suspect knew the victims or if this was a random act.
Kelley applauded the quick actions of the witness.
“There’s not enough thanks to an independent witness who called 911 right away,” she said. “We don’t know how this was going to go. We don’t know what this suspect’s agenda was. But thank God for the witness being where he was and the quick action and staying on the phone with us.”
There is no threat to the community, authorities said.