The Loveland Police Department has arrested two people believed to be connected to the shooting of a sleeping homeless person in downtown Loveland on Thursday.
On Friday, LPD detectives identified a vehicle and two women — 27-year-old Erin Lambertus and 18-year-old Ayla Osterloth — both of whom were residing in Bozeman, Montana in connection with the the shooting, according to a Monday release.
A team of detectives flew to Bozeman and contacted local authorities Friday. The LPD, with the assistance of the Bozeman Police Department and Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, arrested both women without incident, police announced on Monday.
Bob Coleman, spokesperson for the department, said in an email to the Reporter-Herald that the two women did not have connections to Loveland. He did not say why the women were in Loveland or possible a motive for the shooting other than to say it was a random attack.
Both Lambertus and Osterloth were charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder and are being held at the Gallatin County Detention Center in Bozeman without bond while they await an extradition hearing.
“We moved heaven and earth to take these two suspects into custody to prevent more random acts of violence,” Loveland Police Chief Tim Doran said in the release. “I am very proud of our people and grateful for the assistance of law enforcement resources from the state of Montana.”
On Thursday, the LPD received a 911 call at 9:42 p.m., reporting that a man was wounded after being shot while sleeping in the 800 block of North Cleveland Avenue, according to a previous release from the department. When officers arrived, two homeless men told them that, as they were sleeping in the area, someone fired at least one gunshot at them from a passing vehicle, the previous release states.
One of the men, a 47-year-old from Loveland, was “wounded in the lower extremities” and was transported to the hospital with what police described as non-life-threatening injuries.
The second man, a 34-year-old from Fort Collins, was not injured but remained at the scene to talk to police, according to the release.
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