Tip Helps Police Arrest Suspected Walmart Gunman
Police in Thornton, Colo. say a tip from a citizen helped officers apprehend a man suspected of opening fire at a suburban-Denver Walmart, killing three people Wednesday evening. (Nov. 2)
Now Playing: Tip Helps Police Arrest Suspected Walmart Gunman
Police in Thornton, Colo. say a tip from a citizen helped officers apprehend a man suspected of opening fire at a suburban-Denver Walmart, killing three people Wednesday evening. (Nov. 2)
Media: Associated Press
THORNTON, Colo. (AP) — The Latest on the shooting at a Colorado Walmart (all times local):
1 p.m.
Authorities have identified the three people who were fatally shot at a Walmart in suburban Denver.
Coroner Monica Broncucia-Jordan said Thursday that 52-year-old Pamela Marques, 66-year-old Carlos Moreno, and 26-year-old Victor Vasquez died in Wednesday night's shooting.
Moreno was a grandfather who was a longtime maintenance worker at the Auraria Higher Education Center. It houses various state colleges and universities in downtown Denver.
This Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017 photo released by the Thornton Police Department shows Scott Ostrem, suspected of fatally shooting several people inside a Thornton, Colo., Walmart Wednesday night. He was arrested 14 hours following a brief car chase that ended at a congested intersection, police said. (Thornton Police Department via AP)
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This Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017 photo released by the Thornton Police Department shows Scott Ostrem, suspected of fatally shooting several people inside a Thornton, Colo., Walmart Wednesday night. He was arrested
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Photo: AP
Marlena Fobb, front right, of Thornton, Colo., who was shopping at the time of the shooting at a Walmart store, hugs an unidentified store employee Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. The store was the scene of a shooting Wednesday night when a man walked in and opened fire with a handgun. The suspect was arrested Thursday, about 14 hours after fleeing the store. Fobb's husband, Jason, left, holds the vacuum cleaner that the couple was purchasing at a self-check stand when the suspected gunman entered the store.
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Marlena Fobb, front right, of Thornton, Colo., who was shopping at the time of the shooting at a Walmart store, hugs an unidentified store employee Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. The store was the
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Jason Fobb, second from left, comforts his daughter, Angelique, as Fobb's wife, Marlena, right, embraces her daughter Destiney outside a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. The couple was in the store at the self-check stand Wednesday night when a man walked in and opened fire with a handgun, killing several. The suspect was arrested Thursday, about 14 hours after fleeing the store.
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Jason Fobb, second from left, comforts his daughter, Angelique, as Fobb's wife, Marlena, right, embraces her daughter Destiney outside a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. The couple was
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Marlena Fobb, right, holds her daughter, Destiney, outside a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. Marlena Fobb and her husband, Jason, were inside the store Wednesday night when a man walked in and opened fire with a handgun, killing several shoppers. The suspect was arrested Thursday, about 14 hours after fleeing the store.
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Marlena Fobb, right, holds her daughter, Destiney, outside a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. Marlena Fobb and her husband, Jason, were inside the store Wednesday night when a man walked
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Employees head in to a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. A man suspected of fatally shooting several inside the suburban Denver Walmart on Wednesday, was arrested 14 hours later following a brief car chase Thursday that ended at a congested intersection, police said.
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Employees head in to a Walmart store Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. A man suspected of fatally shooting several inside the suburban Denver Walmart on Wednesday, was arrested 14 hours later following
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Marlena Fobb, a customer from Thornton, Colo., who was trying to buy a vacuum cleaner at a Walmart store, talks about seeing a gunman entering the store as Fobb returns to pick up her vacuum Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. The store was the scene of a fatal shooting Wednesday night. The suspect was arrested Thursday, about 14 hours after fleeing the store.
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Marlena Fobb, a customer from Thornton, Colo., who was trying to buy a vacuum cleaner at a Walmart store, talks about seeing a gunman entering the store as Fobb returns to pick up her vacuum Thursday, Nov. 2,
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Nick Noblett, left, and Tonya Brown talk Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, about being in the Walmart store behind them during a fatal shooting Wednesday evening in Thornton, Colo. The couple returned to the store to pick up their belongings after escaping when the gunman entered.
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Nick Noblett, left, and Tonya Brown talk Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017, about being in the Walmart store behind them during a fatal shooting Wednesday evening in Thornton, Colo. The couple returned to the store to
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Photo: David Zalubowski, AP
Walmart employees and customers that were inside the store wait to hear what to do from police as they stand behind police tape outside of a Walmart store where several people were killed in a shooting, Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017, in Thornton, Colo. Investigators, who have not released any details about the circumstances of the shooting, were reviewing security footage and interviewing witnesses to get a description of the shooter. (Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via AP)
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Walmart employees and customers that were inside the store wait to hear what to do from police as they stand behind police tape outside of a Walmart store where several people were killed in a shooting,
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Photo: Helen H. Richardson, AP
The Latest: 3 victims of Walmart shooting identified
Spokesman Blaine Nickerson says he was well-known and respected on campus.
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11:15 a.m.
Neighbors of the man suspected of fatally shooting three people at a suburban Denver Walmart say he was unfriendly and occasionally hostile toward them.
Gerald Burnett says he was sitting on the stairs drinking coffee one morning at his garden-style apartment building in Thornton when Scott Ostrem came down the outdoor stairway. He says Ostrem told him to move and cursed at him.
Teresa Muniz (MUHN'-is) says Ostrem never returned her greetings and once or twice swore at people for sitting in the stairways or leaving laundry in communal machines.
She says she sometimes saw him carrying a bow and set of arrows or a shotgun into or out of his apartment.
She says most people in the building know one another but she never even knew Ostrem's name until now.
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10:40 a.m.
Police say a man suspected of fatally shooting three people inside a Colorado Walmart has a minor criminal record.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila said Thursday that 47-year-old Scott Ostrem had a minor criminal history, but Avila didn't elaborate.
Court records show a resisting arrest charge against Ostrem was dismissed in 1999.
Court records also show Ostrem filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2015.
Ostrem was arrested Thursday, about 14 hours after the shooting inside a Walmart in the Denver suburb of Thornton.
Two men died inside the Walmart, and a woman died later at a hospital.
A motive for the shooting was unknown.
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9:45 a.m.
Police say a man suspected of fatally shooting three people inside a suburban Denver Walmart tried to flee officers in his car but was blocked by traffic.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila said Thursday that 47-year-old Scott Ostrem was arrested without incident after a brief chase that started near an apartment about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the Walmart store.
Avila says police went to the apartment and didn't find Ostrem. But they got an anonymous tip that he was driving in the area and spotted him.
Police took Ostrem into custody after his car was blocked by traffic at an intersection. Avila declined to say if Ostrem was armed.
He says a motive for the shooting is unknown.
Two men died inside the Walmart, which is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Denver in a busy shopping center. A woman died later at a hospital.
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This story has been corrected to show that the tip was that the suspect was driving a car in the area.
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9:20 a.m.
Police say a man suspected of fatally shooting three people inside a suburban Denver Walmart tried to flee officers in his car but was blocked by traffic.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila said Thursday that 47-year-old Scott Ostrem was arrested without incident after a brief chase that started at a Thornton apartment.
Avila says police received an anonymous tip that led them to the apartment, which is about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the Walmart store where the shooting took place late Wednesday.
Police took Ostrem into custody after his car was blocked by traffic at an intersection. Avila declined to say if Ostrem was armed.
He says a motive for the shooting is unknown.
Two men died inside the Walmart, which is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Denver in a busy shopping center. A woman died later at a hospital.
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8:20 a.m.
Police say they've arrested a man suspected of walking into a suburban Denver Walmart and immediately opening fire with a handgun, killing two men and a woman Wednesday night.
Thornton police say 47-year-old Scott Ostrem was arrested Thursday morning, about 14 hours after he fled the store in a car. Authorities used security video to help identify him.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila said Wednesday night that the shooting appears random and there are no indications that it was an act of terror.
He says the motive is unknown.
Two men died inside the Walmart, which is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Denver in a busy shopping center. The woman died later at a hospital.
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6:58 a.m.
Colorado authorities have identified a man who police say nonchalantly walked into a Walmart and immediately opened fire, killing two men and a woman Wednesday night.
Thornton police are searching for 47-year-old Scott Ostrem, who they say fled in a car before officers arrived. Authorities used security video to help identify the suspect.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila says the shooting appears to be random and there are no indications that it was an act of terror.
Customers and employees hid or fled toward the exits after gunshots rang out in Thornton, a suburb of Denver. Avila says he doesn't know how many rounds were fired.
Two men died at the store, and the woman died at a hospital. Authorities did not immediately release any other information about the victims.
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11:53 p.m.
Colorado authorities are searching for a man who police say nonchalantly walked into a Walmart and immediately opened fire, killing two men and a woman Wednesday night.
Thornton police spokesman Victor Avila says the shooting appears to be random and there are no indications that it was an act of terror.
Customers and employees hid or fled toward the exits after gunshots rang out in Thornton, which is a suburb of Denver. Avila says he doesn't know how many rounds were fired.
Authorities are reviewing security video to identify the suspect, who fled in a car before officers arrived.
Two men died at the store, and the woman died at a hospital. Authorities did not immediately release any other information about the victims.
