A man suspected of fatally shooting a neighboring couple over the weekend surrendered to authorities Monday, walking into Thornton police headquarters where he was arrested without incident.
Lance Leroy McDermed, 36, is being held on suspicion of gunning down neighbors Vera and Marco Escobedo when they responded to his knock on their door about 6:40 p.m. Saturday at the Autumn Creek apartments, police said.
McDermed is being held at the Adams County Jail on investigation of two counts of first-degree murder, said Matt Barnes, a Thornton Police Department spokesman.
Earlier Monday, the Weld County Sheriff’s Office found McDermed’s car, a 1984 Chevrolet Cavalier, at a truck-stop car wash at Interstate 25 and Colorado 119. The car was found about 12:30 p.m., after truck-stop employees called authorities to report it.
McDermed turned himself in about 2:30 p.m.
On July 23, Vera Escobedo filed a harassment complaint against McDermed, telling police he had screamed profanities at her as she parked outside the building they lived in.
