Suspect arrested after discharging firearm during Rifle rodeo event
Editor’s note: The original news release sent to the Post Independent misstated the event where the shooting took place. The event was a rodeo.
A suspect was arrested after allegedly discharging a firearm during a rodeo event in Rifle on Sunday, a Rifle Police Department news release states.
Eddy Escobar Lopez, 32, is charged with five counts of felony first-degree assault, one misdemeanor count of reckless endangerment and one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance (1-4 grams of fentanyl).
The shooting took place around 9:22 p.m. Sunday, when Lopez was involved in an altercation between several males during the rodeo event at the Garfield County Fairgrounds.
Lopez eventually produced a firearm and discharged it. No one was injured, according to the release.
“The suspect then fled the Fairgrounds,” the release states. “Witnesses, including an off-duty Rifle Police Department Detective, observed the suspect flee into a wooded area near Rifle Creek. With the assistance of surrounding agencies, a perimeter was established and a reverse 911 was sent out.”
Garfield County All Hazards Response Team arrived and conducted a thorough search of the area and at approximately 1:56 a.m. and located Lopez, the release states. Lopez complied and was taken into custody without incident.
This case remains under investigation. Updates will be released when possible.
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