Glenwood Springs burglary suspect dies in crash after fleeing

A burglary suspect allegedly fleeing the scene in a stolen vehicle crashed into a ravine and died Tuesday night, a Garfield County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said.

“There was a burglary, the guy came out and found the suspect and he took off in a car,” Garfield County Sheriff’s Officer Communications Officer Walt Stowe said. “In the process, he crashed. He left the road, went into a ravine and he was killed on site.”

According to a Wednesday morning news release, sheriff’s deputies were notified around 7:20 p.m. of a burglary in process in Glenwood Springs. In the process, the suspect was interrupted and began heading up 4 Mile Road until reaching Sunlight Mountain Ski Resort.

At that point, the suspect turned around and began traveling down 4 Mile Road at a high rate of speed before leaving the roadway and crashing, the release states. This prompted sheriff’s deputies to engage a reverse 911 call, advising all area residents to stay inside with doors and vehicles locked until the suspect could be located.

“The call was canceled once the suspect was located at the crash scene and it was determined there were no other suspects involved who may have fled the scene,” the release states. “The crash resulted in the fatality of the suspect.”

The Colorado State Patrol’s accident reconstruction specialists arrived on scene to assist in the investigation, the release states.

As of Wednesday morning, Stowe said state patrol has continued to investigate the scenes, which include the crash site as well as the suspected site of the burglary.

The identity of the suspect is unknown at this time, the release states. The suspect’s identity will be released by the Garfield County Coroner’s Office once it’s established and next of kin has been notified.

Reporter Ray K. Erku can be reached at 612-423-5273 or rerku@postindependent.com