About 22 hours after deputies in Douglas County “cleared” a home in Highlands Ranch, where a man suspected of firing gunshots had hid, the sheriff’s office announced that a body was found inside the home.
The Douglas County Coroner’s Office identified the dead man Wednesday as 36-year-old Ryan Lane. The coroner’s office did not release a cause of death, or a manner in which Lane died.
UPDATE reference yesterday. Suspect was found deceased inside victims residence. Deputies never had contact w/ suspect. Coroner's Office has positively identified the suspect as Ryan Lane (DOB 3/11/83). Cause & manner will also be determined by the Coroner.
— DC Sheriff (@dcsheriff)
The incident unfolded Tuesday afternoon in the 9800 block of Castle Ridge Circle when deputies responded to reports of gunfire.
According to the sheriff’s office, a man approached another man and multiple shots were fired. The victim ran from the scene and the suspect was believed to be inside the victim’s home, the sheriff’s office said.
A SWAT team member deployed a stun grenade into the home in an attempt to flush out the suspect. Deputies on Tuesday were not able to make verbal contact with the suspect.
At about 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, the sheriff’s office announced that the home had been cleared. There was no mention of the body being discovered.
“It was not announced at the time … because it was (and still is) an open investigation and there are several things that need to happen before we will make that type of announcement,” said Deputy Lauren Lekander, a sheriff’s spokeswoman, in an email.
On Tuesday, residents in the neighborhood were told to shelter in place while the incident was ongoing. When the home was “cleared,” the sheriff’s office did say: “There is no threat to the community.”
Lekander said deputies outside the home Tuesday did not report hearing any gunshots come from inside the home after they had it surrounded.
No deputies on scene resorted to gunfire as part of the response to the incident, Lekander said.
Lane and the resident, who fled his home and was not injured, were “known to each other,” she said.
Lane died of “what are believed to be self-inflicted injuries,” Lekander said. An investigation is ongoing.
