Local Briefs PEDESTRIAN HIT, KILLED DURING CARJACKING
A 26-yearold man is in custody after allegedly stealing a pickup and hitting and killing a man who had just bought a cup of coffee at a Denver 7-Eleven store.
The incident unfolded about 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, when Eric Okano Ukuni carjacked a red Ford pickup from the parking lot of Mi Pueblo Market, 6040 E. 64th Ave., according to an arrest affidavit. Ukuni allegedly stole the truck from a father who was dropping off his daughter at work. Ukuni got into the truck, started it and tried to run over the two.
Witnesses told investigators the driver of a red pickup intentionally struck another vehicle from behind, pushing it into another vehicle. The driver then crossed Havana, striking a pedestrian and a white van.
The Denver coroner’s office identified the dead man as 66-year-old Ernest Gurrini. He died of blunt force injuries, the coroner’s office said.
Parachute woman’s body found in Colorado River.
A woman’s body found Monday afternoon in the Colorado River near Parachute was identified Tuesday as Daisy Ferguson, Coroner Robert Glassmire said. Ferguson, 43, was reported missing Sunday from her home. The circumstances of her disappearance remain under investigation, but foul play is not suspected.
Destructive emerald ash borer beetle found.
LAFAYETTE» The first signs of the emerald ash borer beetle have been found in Lafayette, according to officials. The discovery comes four years after investigators first found the invasive pest in Boulder in 2013. Officials said in a news release that Aug. 3, a Boulder County forester identified an ash tree on private land in the vicinity of Arapahoe Road and North 95th Street as potentially infested with EAB. Populations of the insect are capable of spreading a half-mile each year on their own.
Incline to close for four months for repairs.
The Manitou Incline will close for repairs Aug. 19. The trail is expected to remain barred to the public for four months as workers stabilize the uppermost segment of the old cog railway, where lumber ties are loose or missing and broken culverts jut from the eroded ground. The project will complete a four-year effort costing approximately $5 million to repair the Incline.
Library moves Grandin event to accommodate bigger crowd.
LONGMONT»
The public library will move the highly anticipated Temple Grandin event to the Vance Brand Auditorium to allow as many as 1,350 people to attend. The library scored Grandin, a renowned author and speaker on the subjects of autism and animal handling, because Teen Librarian Claire Studholme took a chance to contact Grandin out of the blue to come speak as part of the library’s Authors We Love Series. The larger venue at Skyline High School, 600 E. Mountain View Ave, can accommodate the 1,000 people who tried to get tickets. No new tickets will be released.
Military veteran named new city manager.
A 26-year Army veteran has been chosen as the next city manager. The City Council will hire Stallings, N.C., town manager Kevin Woods at its Aug. 22 meeting, and he is slated to start Oct. 2.
Woods has been town manager for Stallings, population 15,000, for the past three years. Thornton, with a population nearing 140,000, is Colorado’s sixth-largest city.
Grand jury indicts Utah suspect in carjacking.
A federal grand jury in Nevada has indicted an ex-felon from Utah on charges related to an armed car-jacking in Sparks, Nev., last month that triggered a multistate search for an 8-year-old girl. Federal prosecutors in Reno announced the indictment Wednesday of 28-year-old Andrew Brigman of Layton, Utah. He faces one count each of carjacking, felon in possession of a firearm and use of a firearm during a crime of violence. The girl who went missing after the July 6 carjacking at the Nugget Casino in Sparks was found safe weeks later in Alamosa. The Colorado State Patrol also found the stolen vehicle and subsequently arrested Brigman on charges including aggravated motor vehicle theft and speeding.