Investigators are trying to solve two of the most high-profile
crimes of the year in Parker, but the absence of evidence has
stymied their efforts to catch the suspects.
The Parker Police Department has been plagued by a “lack of
witnesses and lack of leads” in the nonfatal shooting of a
27-year-old woman and a brazen daytime robbery of a jewelry
salesman, said Parker police Lt. Sam Realmuto.
Investigators, however, received a promising lead when three
tubs that once contained an estimated $300,000 worth of jewelry
were recovered from a Dumpster in Fountain, south of Colorado
Springs.
The tubs were stolen from a dog jewelry salesman at gunpoint by
three masked men Feb. 9 in a Starbucks parking lot northeast of
South Parker Road and Lincoln Avenue.
The tubs were empty when they were found, and so was a briefcase
that contained the victim’s handgun, but the suspects left behind
the victim’s credit cards and checkbook. The evidence will undergo
forensic testing to see if it yields some valuable clues.
There were no witnesses to the robbery and no description of the
suspects or their getaway vehicle.
Police also are trying to determine who entered a 27-year-old
woman’s residence at the Town and County Village townhomes at East
Mainstreet and Victorian Drive last month and shot her in the
shoulder.
Although the weapon used in the crime was recovered at the
scene, investigators only have the victim’s statement and little
else.
“There is little evidence, but the evidence we did obtain from
the townhome has since been sent to [the Colorado Bureau of
Investigation] for analysis,” Realmuto said, adding that gunshot
residue test results on the alleged victim have not come back yet.
The gun is being evaluated for DNA and fingerprints.
Police said the suspect in the case fled the scene on foot after
the shooting and police searched the area without finding anyone
matching his description.
A composite sketch released days after the shooting has not
resulted in any leads. Realmuto said police have no reason to doubt
that the report is credible; the investigation still is open.
It is tough when leads go cold, but police do not give up easily
when their back is to the wall.
“Our options are to continue to keep an active investigation and
hope a development presents itself,” Realmuto said. “That’s in
conjunction with any forensics.”
Investigations are boosted by new leads, including the recovery
of evidence such as the jewelry bins.
Police are taking every possible angle and using every resource
to generate a new clue, using the serial number on the victim’s gun
and a detailed description of the dog jewelry, hoping the suspects
will try to sell it.
“We’re still working [these cases] every day,” Realmuto
said.
