Two shoppers and a police officer identified Christopher Joseph Taylor, 20, on Thursday as the person who shot and killed a woman and wounded her boyfriend at Aurora Mall on June 21.
Shopper Bernardo Garcia testified during a preliminary hearing in Arapahoe County District Court that he was with his wife at the mall when he saw an argument between Taylor and Kyle Boyd, 23.
During the argument, Boyd’s girlfriend, Krystal Martinez, 19, pulled Boyd away by the arm and told him to walk away from the confrontation, Garcia said.
It appeared that Taylor was the aggressor and that Boyd took a defensive posture, Garcia said.
It was not clear why Boyd and Taylor were arguing.
Taylor was accompanied to the mall by 20-year-old Gregory Holiday, but Holiday was not involved in the argument, police say.
Holiday is facing a felony charge of possessing a firearm, but he is not accused of killing Martinez.
Moments after the first argument, Garcia said, he heard more arguing in a stairwell between the upper and lower floors of the mall.
“The next time I got startled was gunfire,” Garcia said.
Taylor extended his arm down and started firing shots in rapid succession, Garcia said.
Martinez was shot in the head and died on the stairs. Boyd was also shot in the head but survived.
Another witness, Katrina Bowman, said she was shopping when Taylor, Martinez and Boyd nearly bumped into her while arguing.
“The two males were yelling at each other … every profanity I can think of,” Bowman said. “(Martinez) was saying, ‘No, let’s not do this. Let’s go, honey.”‘
During the argument, Bowman said, she heard Taylor tell Boyd, “I can kill you.”
Bowman broke down in tears when she described how Martinez’s body was positioned on the stairwell after she was shot.
“She just wanted to make it stop,” Bowman said of Martinez.
After the shooting, Aurora police officer Walter Obrecht said he saw Taylor running away and dumping a gun into the bushes.
Obrecht arrested Taylor. Holiday was arrested in the parking lot.
The preliminary hearing continues Nov. 14 and 15.
Staff writer Felisa Cardona can be reached at 303-820-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com.
