A 29-year-old Denver man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of first-degree murder in a fatal shooting at an Edgewater apartment on Sunday morning.
Kyle Valdez is suspected of shooting and killing Miguel Barboza, 29, inside an apartment in the 2700 block of Ingalls Street at 5:15 a.m., according to a Wednesday update released by the Edgewater Police Department.
Valdez was hospitalized with head injuries he sustained when witnesses subdued him after the shooting and was arrested when he was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon, according to Edgewater police.
He was booked into the Jefferson County jail and is scheduled to appear in court Thursday morning.
In a separate statement released earlier Wednesday, police identified Barboza, 29. Barboza lived at the apartment where the shooting happened, police said in that release.
Sonstegard said police believe there were at least six people in the apartment at the time of the shooting, but there could have been more that officers are working to identify.
The other individuals in the apartment subdued the alleged shooter, leaving Valdez with traumatic injuries, Sonstegard said.
It appeared to be a large gathering or party with friends and alcohol, and the suspect was an invited guest, he said.
Officers who responded to the scene just after 5:15 a.m. Sunday found Barboza with a gunshot wound and the suspect with head trauma, according to a Sunday release from the police department.
Paramedics administered medical care to the gunshot victim at the scene, but he died from his injuries.
Police are unaware of any possible motive that might have led to the shooting and have been unable to speak with the suspect due to his condition, but the preliminary investigation suggested the suspect had gotten into an altercation with the victim before the shooting.
“The suspect was present in the apartment and known to the other people there, this wasn’t some random person bursting in,” Sonstegard said.
Anyone with information about the shooting should contact police investigators at 720-763-3024 or Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
This is a developing story.
Sign up to get crime news sent straight to your inbox each day.
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 11:30 A.M. Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2023, to include the victim’s identity and again at 4:25 p.m. to note the suspect was released from the hospital and arrested.
