Three shot dead this week; two more wounded

Three people have been shot dead in Aurora this week in four shootings, and one suspect has been arrested, police said Wednesday.

On Monday, there were two separate shootings in the city, one at a motel and the other in a park. On Tuesday, a woman died in a double shooting in a parking lot, and on Wednesday, a woman was shot dead, also in a parking lot.

“We have our homicide detectives working around the clock,” said Elizabeth Mcgregor, a police spokeswoman.

At 4:22 a.m. Monday, officers responded to the Radiant Inn, 10950 E. Colfax Ave., on a shooting and found a man dead. Jimmy Lee Churchill, 33, the brother of the shooting victim, has been arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder and possession of a weapon by a previous offender, police said.

The Arapahoe County coroner’s office identified the victim as 47-year-old Deshawn Lee Hunter. Police said the two men had argued prior to the shooting.

At 8:50 p.m. Monday, police said on Twitter that a 17-year-old male was shot in the leg at Red Tailed Hawk Park, 23701 E. Hinsdale Way. The teen survived the shooting and an investigation is ongoing, Mcgregor said.

At 5:10 a.m. Tuesday, a double shooting in a parking lot at 11895 E. Archer Place left one woman dead and another woman suffering critical injuries. At 12:50 a.m. Wednesday, a woman was shot dead in a parking lot at 9796 E. Mexico Ave., police said. Both shootings are under investigation. Police did not release any suspect information on the parking lot shootings.

The coroner’s Office identified the woman shot dead on Wednesday as 24year-old Onjahnique Tahdase Williams.

In Aurora, there have been 12 homicides since Jan. 1 and 35 nonfatal shootings this year to date, Mcgregor said.

Last year, in all of 2021, there were 45 homicides in Aurora.

Anyone with information on the shootings is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-9137867.