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Neighbors shocked after hearing, witnessing fatal shooting in Security-Widefield

Posted at 8:42 PM, Oct 08, 2018
and last updated 2018-10-08 23:12:04-04

SECURITY-WIDEFIELD – Police are still searching for a suspect after a man was shot and killed late Sunday night in Security-Widefield.

It happened on Tranters Creek Way, in the Lorson Ranch area.

“Everybody is shocked because it’s too close to home,” said Len Palice, who lives a few doors down from where the shooting allegedly took place.

Palis was woken up around 11 p.m. by what she now estimates for five or six gunshots.

“I thought it sounded like a motorcycle because I’m not too familiar with gunshots,” she told News5.

Palis says her neighborhood isn’t too familiar with crime–describing it as a safe, tight knit community.

“Mostly car thefts/break-ins, and petty crimes.”

It wasn’t until her son came racing up to her bedroom, panicked, that Palis realized the sound she heard was a series of gunshots.

“It was scary–I was shaking,” she recalled.

“I thought it was someone trying to get in the house, because my son was trying to run upstairs like crazy. I was like ‘what’s wrong?!’ It was really scary. But then I didnt’ think of it as anything. I didn’t think that somebody died three houses down.”

Dale Mushak, who lives nearby, didn’t think much of it either–initially.

“I thought it was fireworks,” he told News5.

Shortly after that, though, Mushak says he and his girlfriend heard screaming and saw emergency vehicles arrive on scene.

“We came to the corner and realized the gentleman had been shot. I heard his mom screaming, ‘Bring my son back, bring my son back.'”

“From there it really got chaotic,” he explained.

Deputies did attempt life-saving efforts until medical personnel arrived, but the victim was pronounced dead on scene.

Mushak says some of the homes nearby were hit by stray bullets.  No other injuries have been reported, though.

“For a quiet community where everyone bans together on everything, it’s just mind-boggling that it happened,” said Mushak.

As of 8 p.m. Monday night, police had not made any arrests.

They spent hours canvassing the neighborhood–knocking on doors to talk to potential witnesses and looking for any residents with security cameras that may have captured something.

“We’ve been here for a while and haven’t had any incident like this. everyone’s concerned,” said Palis.

“But like I told them, maybe it’s just an isolated incident–which i think it is,” she added.

If you have any information to assist in this investigation, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office asks that you contact their hotline at: 719-520-6666.

For more information on the shooting, click here.