It wasn’t exactly a whodunit.
A trail of broken glass and loose change led from a gold BMW with a busted passenger-side window to the small white house across the street.
Witnesses told Denver police that two 20-somethings had just dashed into a house at 2828 Stout St. from the Beemer carrying armloads of winter sporting goods.
But the two men locked inside — Joseph Mario Rossi and Kyle Kellum — refused to come out, police say.
A search-warrant affidavit that recently surfaced in Denver District Court sheds new light on the April 1 car break-in and the strange behavior by two alleged thieves that prompted an hours-long standoff with police.
Kellum and Rossi were eventually arrested that morning and charged with felonies, but not before a SWAT team surrounded the home, police spokesman Sonny Jackson said.
“If there’s concern about risk to an officer if they enter the home … you always call out the negotiator and SWAT,” Jackson said.
It all started just after 4 a.m. when Officers Erik Golladay and Tim Goss arrived at the Stout Street address on a reported theft in progress. Instead of answering the door, Rossi and Kellum began yelling obscenities, police say.
Things got weird over the next six hours.
In full view of police, the men carted their alleged booty into a back room.
A ponytailed Rossi took a break for a drink and to do some weightlifting, Golladay reported.
And at one point, Kellum and Rossi posted a sign from the civil-rights advocacy group Colorado Progressive Coalition in the window and yelled to authorities that “they do not trust police officers,” the affidavit says.
The Progressive Coalition advocates for criminal-justice reform, including swifter discipline of Denver police officers accused of abusing civilians. But a search of the group’s member database shows neither man has been involved with the organization, its staff reported.
A judge eventually signed a search warrant for the home just before 10 a.m., leading officers to the allegedly stolen cache of skis, snowshoes, poles and a container of loose change.
Rossi, 23, and Kellum, 25, were taken into custody.
Rossi is scheduled to be arraigned on the felony trespassing case June 14. Kellum is scheduled for arraignment May 17.
Both men are free on bond.
Jessica Fender: 303-954-1244 or jfender@denverpost.com
