Campus Alert Archive
Auraria

Tased Twice, Then He Opened Fire: Auraria Campus Officer Shot After Trespasser Resists Arrest Near 9th Street

COshootingemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On October 21, 2024, an Auraria Campus police officer was shot in the forearm at approximately 1:18 AM MDT after a trespassing suspect resisted arrest near 9th Street and Champa Street. Two officers had attempted to use Tasers, which were ineffective, before the suspect pulled a gun and fired four shots. The suspect, 29-year-old Aaron Verner, was arrested on charges of attempted homicide.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
1
Institution
Auraria Campus (CU Denver, MSU Denver, Community College of Denver)
Public R1 · CO
~38,000 studentsAuraria Campus Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTPush
Approximate reconstruction163 chars
AURARIA ALERT: Shooting incident near 9th Street and Champa. Campus entrances are closed. Avoid the area. Police are on scene and the situation is being contained.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed from 9News and Denverite coverage of the incident
The shooting occurred at approximately 1:18 AM MDT; the alert followed shortly after
Campus entrances at 9th Street and Colfax Avenue were shut down during the investigation
ALL CLEARPush
Approximate reconstruction211 chars
AURARIA UPDATE: The suspect has been arrested. The campus entrance at 9th and Colfax and the RTD light rail station have reopened. Normal operations will resume. Expect increased police activity on campus today.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed from CBS Colorado and Denver7 coverage
Both the 9th Street/Colfax intersection and the RTD light rail station at Colfax and Auraria reopened after the suspect was taken into custody
The Auraria Campus serves three institutions: CU Denver, MSU Denver, and Community College of Denver
Context

Background

In the early morning hours of October 21, 2024, two Auraria Campus police officers first encountered Aaron Verner, 29, in the 7th Street parking garage and asked him to leave campus. Later, around 1:00 AM MDT, officers found the same man allegedly trying to break into a campus service vehicle near 9th Street and Champa Street. When both officers deployed their Tasers, they proved ineffective. Verner then pulled a gun and fired four shots, striking one officer in the left forearm. The officer was taken to a nearby hospital with a non-life-threatening injury and was later released. Denver Police arrested Verner and charged him with two counts of attempted homicide and assault to a peace officer. The campus entrance at 9th Street and Colfax Avenue was temporarily closed, along with the RTD light rail station at Colfax and Auraria. The Auraria Campus is a shared campus serving the University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and Community College of Denver in downtown Denver.
Analysis

Key Findings

Officers first encountered the suspect earlier that night in a parking garage and asked him to leave
Two Taser deployments failed to subdue the suspect before he opened fire
The officer's gunshot wound was non-life-threatening; he was treated and released
The Auraria Campus serves three institutions with a combined enrollment of approximately 38,000
Outcome
The officer sustained a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to his left forearm and was treated at a hospital before being released. Aaron Verner, 29, was arrested and charged with two counts of attempted homicide and assault to a peace officer. Campus entrances were temporarily closed during the investigation.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Auraria Campus police officer shot in Denver released from hospital (CBS Colorado)
    cbsnews.com
  2. News
    Auraria Campus officer shot in Denver, suspect arrested (FOX31)
    kdvr.com
  3. News
    Auraria Campus police officer shot early Monday morning (Denverite)
    denverite.com
  4. News
    Auraria Campus Police officer was shot in forearm (9News)
    9news.com
Tags
shootingofficer-involvedcoloradotrespassingshared-campuspublic-universitysuspect-arrested
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion