Vail – Police officers continue to investigate what may have been a staged kidnapping, and are trying to identify two men now characterized as alleged accomplices in the case.
Michael Sean Moore, 35, was reported kidnapped from his Vail home Thursday night. His wife told police that two Hispanic men entered their home and abducted him at gunpoint.
Investigators found Moore on Saturday afternoon in Avon and arrested him on suspicion of aggravated robbery, false imprisonment, menacing with a deadly weapon, theft, false reporting to authorities and domestic violence.
Moore has previously been arrested by the Vail Police Department and the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office on similar charges, according to Vail police Sgt. Susan Douglas.
Vail police said investigators determined that Moore lied about the Thursday kidnapping.
“Investigators are continuing to try and identify the accomplices, the two men who went into the home Thursday night,” city spokesperson Suzanne Silverthorn said, adding that anyone with information is asked call police.
Silverthorn said police are investigating why Moore may have faked his own kidnapping, but details of the investigation are still under wraps. The police are not releasing the wife’s identity or her whereabouts until the accomplices can be apprehended to ensure her safety.
Moore is being held with bail set at $25,000 pending a June 13 arraignment.
ARAPAHOE COUNTY
Shots fired into home; family OK, dog killed
An Arapahoe County family escaped injury but their dog was killed when shots were fired into their home early Monday, Sheriff Grayson Robinson said.
Sheriff’s deputies tracked down two men and a teenager they believe are responsible for the shooting, he said.
Arrested were Jose Martinez, 24, Jesus Estrada, 31, and a 14-year-old boy, Robinson said. They were being questioned Monday.
Neighbors called 911 at 5:39 a.m. when they heard at least five shots fired in the 1200 block of South Clinton Street, Robinson said.
Some neighbors told deputies the occupants of a white Lincoln Continental fired several shots into the house. Five small-caliber shell casings were found outside the home, Robinson said.
The dog was lying on a family member’s bed when it was struck in the back by a bullet. It ran into the living room and soon died, Robinson said.
The residents of the house were unharmed.
Sheriff’s investigators gained information at the scene that led them to 358 Dayton St. in Denver, where they spotted the three suspects.
The trio were taken into custody without incident.
The three were arrested for investigation of attempted first-degree murder. Estrada was already wanted on a probation violation and Martinez on a traffic warrant, the sheriff said.
AURORA
Small fire contained at Mrachek school
About 1,200 Aurora students had a day off Monday after a small fire in Mrachek Middle School, 1955 S. Telluride St.
The fire, which started in a small storage room near the school’s commons early Monday, caused minimal smoke and water damage from the activated sprinklers, said Dianne Lewis, Aurora Pubic Schools spokeswoman.
The fire was contained to the small area, and firefighters were able to extinguish the fire once they arrived.
No one was injured.
Two children were taken to an area hospital with minor asthmatic problems not directly related to the fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
BOULDER
Northern lights adorn Colorado’s night sky
A short-lived storm on the sun’s surface brightened night skies from Maine to Southern California early Sunday, according to the Space Environment Center. The northern lights danced across Colorado’s skies after a Friday eruption on the sun sent a cloud of charged particles racing toward Earth.
Such “solar storms” don’t only create northern lights, said Bill Murtagh, a forecaster with the Space Environment Center, which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Boulder; they can wreak havoc with power grids by creating a surge in current.
Murtagh has seen reports of “irregularities” in power grids but nothing that is likely to cause serious damage, he said.
DENVER
Chambers fund gives $2 million for DPAC
The Chambers Family Fund has donated $2 million toward the ongoing construction of the Ellie Caulkins Opera House and accompanying renovation of the Newton Auditorium in the Denver Performing Arts Complex.
Pending approval of the City Council, the auditorium’s lower level will be named the Chambers Grant Salon. In addition to containing a bar and lounge, the space will be home to Kevin Taylor’s at the Opera House, a full-service restaurant.
Denver residents Merle Chambers and Hugh Grant are longtime supporters of Opera Colorado and Colorado Ballet, which will be the opera house’s principal tenants.
The gift raises the amount of money the city’s Division of Theatres and Arenas has raised from public and private sources to $91.6 million, including $75.8 million in public financing. The total goal is $96 million.
BOULDER
CU prof submits denial of allegations
A University of Colorado professor facing possible dismissal after being accused of plagiarism and lying about his American Indian heritage denied those charges Monday and submitted a lengthy report to a committee investigating his actions.
Ward Churchill offered a 50-page, single-spaced report to a university committee investigating the allegations.
His lawyer, David Lane, said Churchill also submitted his tribal membership card showing he is an associate member of the Keetoowah Cherokee band.
As for plagiarism allegations, Lane said, Churchill in one instance simply took articles written by other people and put them together for a chapter of one book, which Churchill did not take credit for.
CU spokeswoman Pauline Hale would not comment, saying the work on the school’s Standing Committee on Research Misconduct is confidential.
