A Colorado man carrying an AR-style rifle, a handgun, physique armor, a helmet and pretend explosives in his automotive was discovered useless in an obvious suicide at an amusement park early Saturday, officers stated.
“There’s much more we do not know proper now than we do know,” Garfield County Sheriff Lou Valario stated at a information convention Monday.
Valario stated upkeep employees discovered a 20-year-old girl useless within the girls’s restroom at Glenwood Caverns Journey Park within the early morning hours of Saturday, earlier than the theme park opened for the day.
The person, whose id has not been launched, was carrying what was described as black tactical clothes “bearing patches and logos that look like related to regulation enforcement,” the Sheriff’s Workplace stated in a press release.
Investigators do not know what the person meant or the motive, and Valario stated there was no clear historical past or cause for the priority expressed by household or buddies.
He was carrying an AR-style rifle with a number of magazines, a semi-automatic pistol with a number of magazines, was carrying physique armor and a ballistic helmet, and investigators found “actual and pretend explosives,” Valario stated.
Valario stated the phrases “I am not a assassin” and “I simply wished to get into the caves” have been written on a wall within the toilet the place the person’s physique was discovered, though he advised reporters he had solely seen images.
Investigators have no idea for sure that the particular person discovered useless wrote the letter. There was one other textual content however the sheriff could not determine what it was.
Valario stated the person doubtless was unable to buy weapons legally due to his age. There are restrictions, and Colorado earlier this 12 months handed a regulation elevating the gun buy age to 21.
He added that the weapons discovered seemed to be so-called “ghost weapons,” that are unregistered firearms that may be manufactured at dwelling from kits.
Glenwood Caverns Journey Park is an amusement park in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, a metropolis of about 10,000 within the Rocky Mountains 20 miles west of Denver.
It had thrilling rides and caves. The caves lengthen to greater than 16,000 identified toes, in accordance with the park’s web site.
The person discovered useless was from the Carbondale space, Valario stated. Valario stated he entered the park illegally earlier than his physique was discovered. He added that it was clear that the person shot himself, however an post-mortem was scheduled.
Regardless of the stains on his clothes that resemble these of regulation enforcement, Valario stated that so far as he is aware of, he doesn’t belong to regulation enforcement.
Close to the positioning of the physique, investigators discovered faux hand grenades and a pipe bomb, and in his automotive there was an improvised explosive system in addition to one other explosive system, Valario stated.
The handgun was discovered subsequent to the physique and the rifle was on a desk within the toilet, Valario stated.
Guests take an elevator to the Journey Park, however there’s a service highway resulting in it, Valario stated, and it’s believed the person drove to the park to enter after enterprise hours.
“This unhappy and tragic incident reminds us how vital the Glenwood Springs group is to us,” Nancy Hurd, the park’s normal supervisor, stated in a press release. She thanked all regulation enforcement businesses that responded.
The FBI is aiding the Sheriff’s Workplace and investigators will study the person’s cellular phone, social media and conduct interviews to be taught extra about him and what he was as much as, Valario stated.
“We had the potential for one thing very heinous and horrific to occur on this group,” he stated. “We have been fortunate that did not occur.”
