YOUR AD HERE »

Gypsum man’s condition still serious after shooting

Daily Staff Report
Vail, CO Colorado

DOTSERO, Colorado ” A 25-year-old Gypsum man who may have been unarmed when he was shot by a shotgun blast in the abdomen at a party Friday remained in serious condition Sunday, the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said.

Witnesses told investigators that several people had been involved in an argument and then a “shoving, punching” fight at an outdoor party about two miles up a dirt road that starts near a Dotsero trailer park, the Sheriff’s Office said.

A sport utility vehicle was fired on with a shotgun about midnight Friday after the fight near the Dotsero volcano ended, the Sheriff’s Office said. The Gypsum man was standing outside the stopped vehicle and was injured by the shot, the Sheriff’s Office said. The Sheriff’s Office declined to name the victims or suspects but said it may release the suspects’ names once they are charged Sunday.



The Gypsum man’s friends took him to Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs, said Lt. Mike McWilliam of the Sheriff’s Office. At least two other people were with that vehicle at the time of the shooting, McWilliam said.

After hearing accounts from witnesses, sheriff’s deputies alerted other law enforcement agencies of a description of the sport utility vehicle suspected in the shooting, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Support Local Journalism



Avon Police stopped a vehicle matching the description and detained two men and one juvenile male, the Sheriff’s Office said. A 12-gauge shotgun was found in the vehicle, McWilliam said.

The juvenile male was released to his father afterward, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The Gypsum man’s bladder and intestines were injured in the shooting, but he is expected to recover, McWilliam said. Some of the pellets from the shotgun blast were removed, and some were left in his abdomen to avoid more damage by removing them, McWilliam said.

The man could be kept in the hospital about four days, McWilliam said.

The two male suspects, both Eagle County residents, were being held in the Eagle County jail Sunday pending filing of criminal charges, which could range from felony assault to attempted murder, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The suspects may be charged Sunday, said McWilliam, who declined to release their names until then. The male juvenile was a witness to the shooting, and McWilliam didn’t know whether he would be charged.

McWilliam did not have further details on the shooting Sunday because more people needed to be interviewed, he said.

Beer bottles were found at the volcano, but McWilliam didn’t know how many people were at the party. He also didn’t know exactly how the suspects and the people in the other vehicle met up with each other on the road or why the Gypsum man was standing outside one of the vehicles when he was shot.

The Sheriff’s Office is looking for people who knew what was going on before and after the shooting, McWilliam said. Anyone with information is asked to call the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office at (970) 328-8500 or remain anonymous by calling Eagle County Crime Stoppers at (970) 328-7007.

This story will be updated today on vaildaily.com.

Staff Writer Steve Lynn can be reached at 748-2931 or slynn@vaildaily.com.


Support Local Journalism