A 13-year-old boy shot and killed a Colorado grandpa on a Denver bus because the 60-year-old man’s leg was blocking the aisle, according to police.
Around 6:41 p.m. on Jan. 27, a dispute erupted on a Regional Transportation District bus in Denver, according to KDVR.
The confrontation purportedly was sparked over the grandfather’s leg being in the aisle of the bus, which allegedly enraged a 13-year-old passenger. The argument escalated to the point that the 13-year-old suspect shot and killed 60-year-old Richard Sanchez, according to law enforcement.
“At this stage of the investigation, it appears there was a verbal exchange between the suspect and victim about the victim’s leg blocking the aisle on the bus, and the suspect then shot the victim,” the Denver Police Department said in a press release on Friday.
Sanchez was rushed to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
A second person was wounded in the shooting, but was medically treated at the crime scene.
The boy accused of the fatal shooting was arrested on Thursday. He is being held on investigation of first-degree murder, the Denver Police Department stated. The official charges for the juvenile suspect will be determined by the Denver District Attorney’s office.
The investigation into the bus shooting is ongoing.
Sanchez was fatally shot just a few blocks away from his home, family members said.
The family of the slain man said they were not informed he was killed until they contacted police to report him missing.
“It’s been hard because we didn’t know where he was at, and the whole time, he was at the hospital, and they didn’t contact us,” Sanchez’s grandson, Joseph Chavez, told KDVR on Tuesday.
“I was really heartbroken, honestly,” Chavez continued. “I don’t understand how someone could do that to such an honest person. It’s been hard because we didn’t know where he was at, and the whole time, he was at the hospital, and they didn’t contact us. Nobody was there with him during his last breath.”
Chavez noted that his grandpa was “always happy,” and a “really happy dude.”
At least 178 passengers were assaulted or injured while using Regional Transportation District transit in 2021 and the first two months of 2022.
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