Suspect dead following officer-involved shooting and house fire in El Paso County Thursday night

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KKTV) - A scary scene unfolded in an eastern El Paso County neighborhood Thursday, as a suspect barricaded themselves in a home, which was later on fire.

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said this all started Wednesday when deputies got information that a suspect was threatening a family member and a former significant other, violating an existing restraining order.

“There was domestic violence concerns involving menacing and harassment and that information was entered in as a warrant,” said Lt. Deborah Mynatt of EPCSO.

Then, Fountain Police Department pulled over the suspect at an unknown time, who reportedly ended up fleeing officers.

“The Fountain Police Department was able to obtain identifiers such as suspect description and vehicle information, which then resulted in us locating that individual to his residence,” said Mynatt.

Just before 6 p.m. Thursday, two deputies went to the suspect’s residence on the 6800 block of Boone Road, just south of Yoder, in an attempt to make contact with the suspect. No one answered, but deputies heard shuffling inside.

“They called out the suspect’s name and in turn, someone from within the home, fired one round directly out of that front door and barely missed our two deputies who were standing by. Our two deputies immediately went for cover and requested our tactical support group to respond and assist,” said Mynatt.

EPCSO says the suspect was randomly firing out of the home during an hour and a half time frame. At about 7:15 p.m. the following message was issued for a neighborhood in Truckton:

“This is the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. Today is 04-28-2022. There is law enforcement activity in the area of 6200 Block of Boone Rd. Please secure your home and stay away from the doors and windows. You will receive another notification when the situation has been resolved.”

One neighbor was safely evacuated. The shelter-in-place order was lifted just after 10 p.m.

At some point, a fire broke out within the home, although the circumstances of the fire are still under investigation, including how the fire started.

EPCSO says at some point, the two deputies fired at least one round into the home “near the suspect.”

“We cannot confirm the location of the suspect but we believe the suspect is deceased within the home. The reason why we cannot confirm that, is because majority of that home is now collapsed,” due to the fire, said Mynatt.

The two deputies involved are placed on administrative leave, per department policy.

Friday afternoon, the sheriff’s office confirmed a body was found inside the home.

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