Johnstown police officer dies in apparent drowning

A man who apparently drowned in Horsetooth Reservoir on Monday was a Johnstown police officer.

Yuri Thomas, 32, was swimming at the reservoir west of Fort Collins on Monday afternoon when he went under the waterline and didn’t resurface. Thomas was with his wife at the time. She was on site and called 911 for help.

“It is with a heavy heart that we make the announcement that the Johnstown Police Department lost one of our officers in a tragic accident,” the department said Tuesday in a Facebook post. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Yuri Thomas and ask that anyone that wishes to show support please visit the GoFundMe page that is set up to help his family in this difficult time.”

The small department currently includes a police chief, a commander, four patrol sergeants, 11 officers, two detectives, a school resource officer and one code enforcement officer.

Thomas grew up on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent, where at a young age he was influence by a school resource officer there, said Sgt. Michael Timme of the Johnstown police.

“It was always his dream to come to the U.S. and work as a police officer,” Timme said.

Thomas received his police certification from Pikes Peak Community College. He was an officer with Northglenn police before joining Johnstown in February.

The GoFundMe page describes Thomas as: “One of the happiest, enthusiastic, and most dedicated Officers to serve the citizens of Johnstown.”

The page aims to raise $15,000. At about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, it had raised $5,260 from just more than 70 donors over nine hours. The fundraiser will benefit Thomas’ family and offset expenses related to his death.

His funeral will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at Resurrection Fellowship, 6520 E. Crossroads Blvd. in Loveland. Thomas was a member of the fellowship. The service is open to the public.