Police investigating rock-throwing attacks on moving vehicles that turned fatal in west metro Denver were stumped and on Friday were preparing to offer a $17,000 reward for information as they hunt for those responsible for the killing of a 20-year-old woman.
One or more assailants may have attacked more vehicles, in addition to the five attacks documented on Thursday, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Jacki Kelley said.
“We have no suspect information. We have no solid leads,” Kelley said.
Late Thursday, investigators reached the owner of a Dodge Ram pickup truck they’d sought and concluded that neither the truck nor the owner was involved.
On Friday, Jefferson County deputies and police in Arvada, Boulder and Westminster again appealed to the public for help. In particular, the police asked that drivers of Tesla vehicles, and others with dashboard cameras, who were in the area along Indiana Street on Wednesday night, immediately contact police via the Jefferson County Sheriff’s anonymous tip line at 303-271-5612.
At least five attacks Wednesday night by one or more assailants targeted a yellow Chevy Spark driven by Alexa Bartell, 20, of Arvada, and other moving vehicles.
Bartell was killed when a rock shattered her windshield and hit her in the 10600 block of Indiana Street about 10:45 p.m. Wednesday, as she was talking on her phone with a close friend, Jefferson County authorities said. Then the phone went silent.
Bartell’s friend used an app to locate Bartell’s phone, went to the location along Indiana Street, and saw Bartell’s yellow Spark off the road in a field. She approached and saw Bartell inside, dead, and dialed 911.
The attacks injured two other drivers.
Police investigators on Friday updated a timeline of the rock-throwing crimes they’ve confirmed:
10:04 p.m. at 100th Avenue and Simms Street in Westminster: Rock thrown through the windshield; driver not injured.
10:26 a.m. at Colorado 93 and Colorado 72 in Arvada: Rock thrown through the windshield; minor injuries to the driver.
10:30 p.m. at McCaslin Boulevard and Indiana Street near the entrance to the Rock Creek neighborhood in Boulder County: Rock thrown through the windshield; minor injuries to the driver.
10:31 p.m. at McCaslin Boulevard and Indiana Street in Boulder County: Rock thrown at Toyota 4Runner; vehicle damaged, driver not injured.
10:45 p.m. at 10600 block of Indiana Street in Jefferson County: Rock crashed through the windshield of a yellow Chevy Spark; driver killed in a homicide.
On Friday, police were vetting information received about other possible attacks, Kelley said, confirming plans to offer $17,000 ($2,000 from Crime Stoppers and $15,000 from a private business donor) for information that leads to catching whoever is responsible.
Rock-throwing attacks on vehicles have happened before — in Seattle, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Britain — but apparently haven’t been fatal.
In July 2014, a football-sized rock thrown by a boy from an overpass on a Pennsylvania highway hit an Ohio teacher, shattering her skull and leaving her impaired.
The attacks this week in metro Denver involved rocks weighing 3 to 5 pounds, authorities said, and some of the rocks that were thrown remained inside targeted vehicles.
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