An Adams County Sheriff’s deputy shot a man near Interstate 76 and 96th Avenue early Monday, the sheriff’s office said.
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The deputy was not hurt and the victim, who has not been publicly identified, was taken to a hospital, Sgt. Shea Haney said. The extent of the man’s injuries was not clear Monday.
The incident began in the early morning when deputies were called to the Super 8 motel at 9051 I-76 Frontage Road for a suspected arson in a hotel room in which the suspect had left the area, Haney said.
At about 6:51 a.m., deputies located a man who they believed matched the arson suspect’s description about a mile north of the motel, near 96th Avenue and I-76 Frontage Road. During a subsequent encounter, one deputy shot the man, Haney said.
It was not clear whether the man was armed when he was shot. Investigators found a knife at the scene, Haney said. Investigators were working to determine whether the man who was shot was the man suspected in the arson, he added.
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The fire at the Super 8 was limited to a single room, and the motel’s sprinkler system activated, which helped to limit the spread of the fire, according to the South Adams County Fire Department.
The sheriff’s office closed several roads in the area for the shooting investigation, including 96th Avenue at Brighton Road, the westbound I-76 off-ramp to 96th Avenue, 96th Avenue east of I-76 at the roundabout and I-76 Frontage Road between 104th Avenue and 88th Avenue.
The agency asked drivers to avoid the area. The deputy who shot the man will be placed on paid administrative leave, and the incident will be investigated by the 17th Judicial Critical Incident Team; both are standard procedure.
The shooting was not related to an incident in Thornton in which a police officer was wounded Sunday night in a shootout, Haney said.
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