Man dies after being shot by Aurora police during confrontation that followed a traffic stop

AURORA, Colo. — An Aurora police officer shot and killed a man during a confrontation that followed a traffic stop near the intersection of Interstate 225 and 6th Avenue Saturday evening, police said.

Scripps News Denver's Maggy Wolanske spoke with Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain and witnesses at the scene to gather answers about what happened.

The officer tried to conduct a “routine” traffic stop following an unspecified violation by a driver around 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The driver, though, continued driving and hit at least two other cars, Chamberlain said.

The suspect then got out of his car and walked toward the officer, Chamberlain said, and “appeared” to be walking toward a handgun that was at the scene.

Chamberlain said the suspect continued to walk toward the officer "in an aggressive posture" and appeared to shout for other people at the scene to confront the officer with him.

The officer, whom Chamberlain said was working alone and had backed into the intersection during the exchange, eventually fired “one to three rounds” at the suspect. A witness who told Denver7 they were in the first vehicle that was rear-ended by the suspect vehicle said "at least three" shots were fired.

Firefighters who arrived at the scene thereafter pronounced the suspect dead.

FULL VIDEO | Chamberlain details the deadly encounter in the video below:

Alison Coombs, an Aurora City Council member, identified the man killed in the shooting as Rajon Belt-Stubblefield.

Much was unknown about the specific details of the exchange between the officer and Belt-Stubblefield prior to the shooting, Chamberlain said.

A witness said at one point Belt-Stubblefield was walking away from the officer, but that the two "engaged" for about a minute-and-a-half to two minutes before shots were fired.

It was not clear where the handgun at the scene came from. A witness who spoke to Scripps News Denver said the suspect was unarmed and that no weapon was visible.

An investigation will also examine the aid – or lack thereof – provided to Belt-Stubblefield by the officer. A witness stated that multiple officers on the scene did not render aid.

“It doesn't appear that [aid] was allowed for based upon the actions of the individuals around and even based upon the actions of the suspect,” he said.

Chamberlain said, though, that body-worn cameras, Flock cameras in the area, and potential bystander video all may have captured the incident on video.

He promised a thorough investigation, which would happen in conjunction with the district attorney’s office.

“We are going to do everything, both internal and external, to make sure that this investigation is transparent, it is 100% valid, and it is factual,” Chamberlain said. “This isn't something that we are going to have answers to overnight. But I also want [people to know] without any question, that we will give 100% of the facts – good, bad or indifferent – about what happened here tonight, and that is what I want to let people know."

Memorial, calls for transparency grows after shooting

A memorial for Belt-Stubblefield started growing along East 6th Avenue on Sunday morning.

Quincy Morris brought a bouquet of flowers to the site of the shooting. He told Denver7 that Belt-Stubblefield was one of his best friends.

“We had just spoken, simple, normal day, you know, talking about college football, planning for the weekend, enjoying ourselves," Morris said. "Then the next thing I know, I get this news. So, total shock."

Robert Berg also stopped by to leave flowers. He told Denver7 he was there when it happened.

“I saw him die right in front of my eyes. It was horrible, the worst thing ever,” Berg said.

Denver7

Videos showing the moments leading up to the shooting from multiple angles are circulating on social media, leading to questions from the community about how the officer handled the situation.

“Like, I'm thinking pepper spray would have been better, you know,” Berg said. “Or maybe only if you shot him in the leg or something.”

Community activists were also at the scene Sunday and said they want more accountability here in Aurora.

“The cop felt he was close enough. So why can't you Taser him? Shoot him in the kneecap, shoot him in his foot, shoot him in his shoulder, you know, non-lethal places,” Aurora resident Alice Hayes said.

In a Facebook post, council member Coombs called for greater transparency and the immediate release of body-worn cameras.

"Rajon Belt-Stubblefield was killed by Aurora Police last night. The Aurora Police Department shared a narrative that heavily favored the officers perspective, and said any further information will take months and months to address. The narrative provided biases the conversation against the person who was shot and killed, and now cannot speak for himself. For full transparency, the community deserves to see body cam footage and all other video promptly, not after months. The APD has not earned the trust necessary to demand months from the community before addressing why and how another unarmed black man was shot and killed by our police department."

Scripps News Denver spoke with Coombs at a community meeting on Sunday evening, who explained the importance of showing up for the community as an elected leader.

"People want us to make clear as elected officials through our actions and our statements, that we believe that black people actually are equal, that their lives matter, that they should live with dignity, that they should be treated with dignity and fairness and care and respect, and that we should see the same future for every child in this city as we would see for our own children," Coombs said.

Coombs addressed the consent decree, which was established in November 2021 to improve the practices of Aurora PD and Aurora Fire Rescue (AFR) which came after a 14-month investigation by the Colorado Department of Law.

The investigation found Aurora PD had a 'patten and practice of racially biased policing, using excessive force, and failing to record required information when it interacts with the community.'

"I think one of the really important things that I heard is that our consent decree needs to actually matter," Coombs said. "It needs to make the difference that we're supposed to make, and one of the differences that people expected that to make is that unarmed black men are not routinely killed in our city and then have their deaths justified."

House Representative Jamie Jackson was also in attendance at the community meeting and spoke with Denver7 about accountability moving forward.

"We need full transparency. We need an independent investigation of this incident, and I also think we need independent oversight of the police force in Aurora," Jackson explained. "They are already under a consent decree as a result of racially biased policing, which stemmed from the killing of Elijah McClain. They're under that consent decree right now as we speak and here we are yet again, with another black man killed by Aurora police."

Videos have been posted to social media from the scene on Saturday which is how Jackson first learned about what happened. She said "de-escalation tactics and non-lethal intervention" could have been used and there needs to be change within APD moving forward.

"We should not have to have these conversations over and over again. Our police officers are supposed to serve and protect us, and it's really important that we're able to have accountability within the police force so that we can have trust within our communities," Jackson said.

A candlelight vigil took place on Sunday evening along E. 6th Ave. by the Sinclair gas station. Community members gathered with flowers and signs to honor Belt-Stubblefield and join in prayer.

The Aurora Police Department said they do not expect any new updates until Tuesday.

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