Aaroné’s name was left off dad’s request for kids’ gifts
Aurora – Weeks before Aaroné Thompson was reported missing, her father mailed in a request to a nonprofit organization for help with Christmas presents for his children – but the little girl’s name was not included, according to the charity.
“I’ve been a little distressed about it, thinking that, you know, her name wasn’t listed along with the other children in their wishes for Christmas,” Leo Pacheco, of the Beacon of Hope Outreach Center, told Denver’s KDVR-TV on Wednesday.
The girl’s father, Aaron Thompson, reported her missing on Nov. 14. The Aurora-based outreach center, which provides food, toys and other items to disadvantaged families during the holiday season, received the form on Oct. 31, Pacheco said.
Aurora police believe Aaroné was killed as long as a year and a half ago and consider Thompson and his live-in girlfriend, Shelly Lowe, “persons of interest.” Pacheco said he didn’t begin processing the request forms until after the girl was reported missing. He called police when he recognized the name and address on the paperwork.
“Just the thought that she was missing from this list certainly is a little chilling to us,” Pacheco said.
Aaroné Thompson’s seventh birthday was Wednesday.
DENVER
No plea deal talks yet for accused accessory
The lawyer for Jaime Arana-Del Angel, accused of assisting Raul Gomez-Garcia after Gomez-Garcia allegedly fatally shot a Denver police detective, said Wednesday that a plea bargain hasn’t been ruled out.
Defense lawyer Frank Moya said no formal discussions have been held between him and prosecutor Bruce Levin. Moya said they need to review hundreds of pages of police reports before talks can take place.
“I think everyone has to look at the material just provided to the DAs and me,” Moya said. “There is a lot of stuff to look through before we can speak intelligently.”
Arana-Del Angel, 27, is charged with accessory to a crime.
Investigators say Arana-Del Angel helped Gomez-Garcia dig a hole in the backyard of the home they shared and watched Gomez-Garcia bury the gun’s magazine and ammunition. Later, Arana-Del Angel said he bought a map, drove Gomez-Garcia to Parachute and told him how to get to California.
Legal analysts have told The Denver Post that they believe prosecutors will cut a deal with Arana-Del Angel because he is a critical witness.
Killed in the May 8 shooting at a West Mississippi Avenue social hall was Detective Donald “Donnie” Young. Detective John “Jack” Bishop was wounded.
DENVER
Firefighter posts bail in machine gun case
A Denver firefighter accused of selling illegally modified machine guns was released on $30,000 bail Wednesday.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Watanabe ordered that Stan Taran Ford post a property bail to be released from custody as he faces federal weapons charges. Ford, 35, who has been a firefighter since 1999, is accused of twice selling fully automatic machine guns to FBI informants.
A search warrant evidence log showed that authorities seized more than 70 firearms from Ford’s house and his arrest affidavit said prosecutors received information that the firefighter had “anti-U.S. sympathies.”
Outside the courtroom, Ford’s lawyer and family members hotly disputed any assertion that Ford is a militant or terrorist.
FORT COLLINS
Former priest faces sexual-assault charges
A former Roman Catholic priest was advised Wednesday of felony sexual-assault charges against him, according to court documents.
Former Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton parish priest Timothy Joseph Evans, 43, faces two counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to court documents.
City police and prosecutors said a gag order kept them from discussing details.
Police requested an arrest warrant for Evans on Nov. 22, when District Court Judge Jolene Blair ordered the case file sealed.
Evans served at the parish for at least four years, the Fort Collins Coloradoan reported. He was ordained in 1993 and was removed from the parish ministry in 2002, according to a statement from Francis Maier, chancellor for the Archdiocese of Denver.
In 2003, the archdiocese removed him from active ministry, according to Jeanette DeMalo, director of communications for the archdiocese.
In a written statement, Maier said the diocese was “deeply concerned” about the charges.
DENVER
Student releases pepper spray in class
Four students suffered minor injuries Wednesday when a student released pepper spray inside a classroom at a northeast Denver school, causing panicked officials to consider evacuating the building.
Denver Fire Department hazardous-materials crews were dispatched to the Omar Blair Edison Charter School, 4905 Cathay St. in Green Valley Ranch, where the student sprayed a door with the pepper spray, principal Kathleen Garvey said. But the school was not evacuated.
Two students were sent home with stomach pains from the spray, and two others were treated and remained in class, Garvey said.
DENVER
Man charged in LoDo wounding of four
A 35-year-old man was charged Wednesday with multiple counts of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault in connection with a shooting in Lower Downtown that left four people seriously wounded early Thanksgiving morning. Michael Rollie will appear in court Friday to be advised of the charges.
Rollie was reportedly involved in an altercation inside Market 41, a LoDo bar, at about 1:50 a.m. on Nov. 24, in which he was injured by a glass bottle that hit him in the head. The charges allege that he left the bar, and a few minutes later began firing shots along Market Street, hitting four people.
DENVER
Auditor sets up phone and e-mail tip lines
Denver Auditor Dennis Gallagher has set up a phone line and e-mail address for individuals to give the auditor’s office tips on audit and other city-related issues.
Gallagher wants the tip line to be used initially to assist his office as it gears up to perform a performance audit on the Denver Police Department.
The tip line phone number to leave a voice-mail message is 720-913-5063. The tip line e-mail is auditor.info@ci.denver.co.us.
