A man suspected of stealing a small front-end loader by hooking the trailer it was on to the back of his truck was in critical condition Wednesday after crashing with police in pursuit.
At least one officer fired multiple gunshots at the suspect, but it’s unknown whether a bullet hit the truck or the driver. Police identified the man as Toby Cordova, 33, of Commerce City.
The officer who fired his gun has been placed on paid administrative leave while an Adams County investigative team, independent of the Police Department, looks into the incident. The officer was not identified Wednesday.
The incident started about 1 a.m. Wednesday near East 112th Avenue and Chambers Road, said Commerce City police Lt. Chuck Saunier.
The area is under massive development, and there have been a high number of thefts from construction sites recently, Saunier said.
A Commerce City officer saw a Chevrolet pickup towing a miniature loader, a 2002 Takeuchi, out of a construction site, and the officer attempted to stop the driver because of the odd-hour haul.
The driver didn’t stop and instead ran a red light, Saunier said.
The truck wound up on Interstate 76 heading east, with police in pursuit.
Police used stop sticks on the highway. The officer who had laid down the stop sticks fired when the suspect tried to run him down, Saunier said.
The driver crossed over the highway and was driving east in the westbound lanes when he crashed near a Barr Lake campground.
No one other than the driver was hurt.
Cordova was in critical condition Wednesday, according to Denver Health Medical Center.
The trailer used to haul the mini-loader, which was reported stolen Wednesday, crushed the pickup after it hit a tree.
Cordova was sentenced to do time in a Colorado prison in 1995 on a stolen vehicle and dangerous drugs conviction, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.
Staff writer Kieran Nicholson can be reached at 303-820-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
