AURORA — Police are searching for a gunman who shot and killed an unarmed Aurora code-enforcement officer as he was investigating a routine complaint Thursday.
The shooter was inside an apartment building in the 1900 block of Clinton Street when Officer Rodney Morales, 40, entered. The teen assailant opened fire on Morales almost immediately, shooting him several times in the torso, Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates said.
“This was a cold-blooded killing,” Oates said.
A witness, Raymond Gerstmayr, said the assailant had been standing in the neighborhood smoking a cigarette about half an hour before the attack.
Police arrived within seconds of the 1:40 p.m. shooting.
Morales was taken to a hospital and died about an hour later.
The killing sparked a massive manhunt by hundreds of police from Aurora and Denver, K-9 teams, a helicopter and an armored car.
The gunman ran south and discarded a gray hoodie emblazoned with the words “South Pole” in red letters.
He is described as black, 18 to 19 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall and about 160 pounds. He has short hair and wore dark blue or black pants and the sweat shirt.
Morales and his partner, a female officer, had been dispatched to investigate a routine complaint. Both were unarmed.
The second officer was not injured.
“This seems to have taken them by complete surprise,” Aurora police spokesman Bob Friel said. “The code enforcement officers’ uniforms do not look like police uniforms.”
It is unclear whether the suspect, or the building where the shooting took place, was linked to the complaint.
Police could offer no motive for the killing. Code officers enforce snow shoveling and other safety and health regulations such as weed control, said Nancy Sheffield, Aurora’s director of neighborhood support.
“This is a terrible tragedy and a sad day for Aurora,” said City Manager Ron Miller. “The city of Aurora extends its heartfelt prayers and condolences to Rodney’s family, co-workers and friends.”
Police cordoned off an area from Havana Street to Yosemite Street and from East Montview Boulevard to East Colfax Avenue. They investigated homes in the immediate area, some three or four times.
As officers combed the neighborhood, Joe Russell walked out of an alley and speculated the killer was long gone.
“There’s too many ways in and out,” Russell said, “If he made it to Colfax, you can tell him goodbye.”
The intense dragnet lasted for hours.
West Middle School, Crawford Elementary, Kenton Elementary and Boston K-8 in Aurora, and Denver’s Bill Roberts School were locked down.
Three of the schools remained locked down until dark. Students were held until their parents could come and take them home.
As dusk settled in, some outside the perimeter decided to take precautions.
“We’re going to my sister’s house,” Amy Avila said as she loaded a stroller in the back of her truck. “I’ve got kids.”
Crowds of neighbors watched as police swarmed their streets.
“Kids play all over here, and this is what they have to see when they get home from school,” Jackie Sudak said while standing with a dozen other people in her front yard on Geneva Street. “The world is just getting wicked and crazy.
“I pray I don’t know who did it.”
Anxious parents outside Crawford Elementary were relieved to see police officers as they waited to collect their children in the evening chill.
“I was happy to see all the lights,” said Chuck Santana, who waited for his sister to pick up her two children. “It’s a bad world. Kids don’t need to see this, but criminals don’t care.”
“Praise God,” hollered Isabella Martinez, as her grandchildren emerged from the school’s side entrance hand-in-hand with their mother. Later, she hugged them and began the walk home.
“I couldn’t put my mind at ease until I saw them with my own eyes,” she said.
Anastasia Flores, 14, a student at West, said the scare was short-lived. The lockdown was announced on the loudspeaker, and students went online to local news sites to find out what was going on.
“When I went out in the hall, everybody was standing, looking out the windows,” she said. “I thought, wow, now it seems a little like Columbine.”
“It’s not right that this happened, we are asking for community help to find who did this,” said Aurora Mayor Ed Tauer. There is a $10,000 reward for information leading to the shooter’s arrest, police said.
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com
Aurora officers killed on duty
Thursday: Rodney Morales was shot while investigating a zoning complaint at an apartment building.
2007: Aurora police Officer Douglas Byrne died from injuries sustained when his cruiser crashed while he was responding to a medical emergency.
2006: Detective Mike Thomas was shot and killed in his car.
1987: Edward J. Hockom Jr. was shot by a fleeing robber.
1985: Thomas Joseph Dietzman was shot by a fellow police officer during a training exercise.
1981: Debra Sue Corr was shot during a traffic stop.
How to help
Anyone with information should call Detective Gretchen Fronapfel at 303-739-6013.
