ARVADA, Colo. — The Arvada police officer who was fatally shot Monday was “ambushed” by a gunman who expressed a hatred for cops, the police chief said. The suspect was also killed during the shootout.
The Arvada Police Department dispatched an officer to a disturbance call at Olde Town Square around 1:15 p.m. About 15 minutes later the agency received 911 calls that shots were fired and an officer was down, NBC News reported.
Officer Gordon Beesley, a 19-year veteran of the department, was killed during the shooting. Moreover, a Good Samaritan identified as John Hurley, 40, was also killed Monday. However, few new details have been released due to the ongoing investigation.
Nevertheless, Arvada Police Chief Link Strate revealed a possible motivation for the criminal action.
“Officer Beesley was ambushed by a person who expressed hatred of police officers,” Chief Strate said at a Tuesday news conference.
Strate also called Hurley “a true hero who likely disrupted what could have been a larger loss of life,” but details about what Hurley did remained unclear.
The deceased suspect was identified by the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office as Ronald Troyke, 59, of Arvada, NBC reported.
“Detectives continue to work to determine what happened,” Strate said.
