Adams County – A day after posting bond and being released on a drug charge, a Brighton man was back in jail Monday, accused of fatally shooting his 21-year-old girlfriend.
Antonio Oakle Diaz, 23, was arrested Wednesday in Northglenn on suspicion of possessing drugs. He posted a $50,000 bond Sunday, according to Colorado court records.
Diaz was being held without bond Monday at the Adams County Jail on suspicion of first-degree murder, said Sgt. Louis Dixon, an Adams County Sheriff’s Office spokesman.
The victim, Laura Janz of Brighton, was shot in the chest.
“I don’t know that there is any connection” between the drug case and the shooting, Dixon said.
The sheriff’s office received a 911 call about 9:15 a.m. Monday about the shooting, which happened at 15650 E. 144th Ave., Dixon said.
The address is in rural Adams County near Brighton. Investigators served a search warrant on the 40-acre farm property, which includes several dilapidated outbuildings as well a farmhouse.
A representative of an investment firm that owns the property could not be reached for comment Monday.
Investigators believe Diaz and Janz had been dating and had argued before the shooting, Dixon said.
“Some type of argument took place,” Dixon said. “We don’t know how that fits in at this point.”
Dixon said there were witnesses to the shooting, but he declined to go into specifics. He did not know who made the 911 call to police.
Dixon described the shooting as an isolated incident and said neighbors should not be alarmed.
A gun was recovered, Dixon said. He did not disclose the type of gun or how many shots were fired.
Diaz’s drug arrest Wednesday included a charge of possession in a drug-free zone.
Northglenn police did not return a call for this report.
Janz apparently kept a myspace.com Web page that included this posting from Friday: “Tony’s got arrested again. They’re charging him as a special offender. He’s being held on a 50k bond and facing 24 to 48 years.”
The page also included a posting on Laura’s mood describing her as “worried.”
In another entry, Laura describes Tony as her “ex.”
Staff writer Kieran Nicholson can be reached at 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
