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(WESTCLIFFE, Colo.) — Authorities said they are searching for a suspect in a rural Colorado shooting that left three people dead and one in critical condition.
A property dispute led to a shooting along a “property line in the wooded area,” according to the Custer County Sheriff’s Office.
Law enforcement responded to the scene at about 1 p.m. local time Monday to a report of shots fired, officials said.
Three people — two men and a woman — had been fatally shot, while another woman was in critical condition but is expected to survive, the sheriff’s office said.
The suspect — identified by authorities as Hanme K. Clark, 45, of Westcliffe — remains at large, the sheriff’s office said Tuesday morning.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Clark on three counts of first-degree murder, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office.
“Suspect is driving a White Ram 1500 pickup with a topper, Colorado license plate: BHLK27,” the sheriff’s office said.
The vehicle was last seen in Chaffee County, Colorado, according to the Custer County Sheriff’s Office.
The vehicle was spotted at a Walmart in Salida following the shooting, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office. The occupant purchased several items in the Walmart and then left in the vehicle “in the direction of the Methodist Mountain residential area,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Shelter-in-place orders that had been implemented in Custer and Chaffee counties amid the search for the suspect have since been lifted.
“After a vigilant search by land and air, we believe the suspect has likely left our area,” the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.
Authorities warned that the suspect is considered armed and dangerous and to call 911 if he or his vehicle is spotted.
Custer County Sheriff Rich Smith said the shooting was reported near a residence on Rocky Ridge Road in Westcliffe. The shooting occurred in a wooded area along a gravel road, Smith said.
It took first responders about 21 minutes to arrive at the scene, in a “remote” area of the county, Smith said.
The first arriving responders made a “high-risk entry to the crime scene,” as they did not know the location of the shooter, Smith said.
“We could not have responded to an incident of this magnitude without all the help we got from our community,” Smith said during emotional remarks at a press briefing on Tuesday. “I hate to see gun violence in my community.”
The three deceased victims were identified by the sheriff’s office as Rob Geers, Beth Wade and James Daulton. The fourth victim, Patty Daulton, is being treated at a trauma center, the sheriff’s office said.
One person was not shot in the incident and was able to run to safety, Smith said.
The victims were from multiple families, according to the sheriff.
“All of the deceased are involved with a property dispute involving the suspect,” said Smith, who told reporters there had been an ongoing court battle between neighbors and the suspect over access to an “informal gravel road” on the suspect’s property that some neighbors currently have the legal right to drive on.
The shooting occurred on one of the victim’s property, Smith said.
Smith said they have been in touch with the suspect’s family members and associates.
“They tell us that they hope he will be willing to turn himself in so that this can be peacefully resolved,” Smith said. “We’re willing to negotiate a peaceful surrender.”
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