1 dead, 7 injured after car plows through crowd in Colorado parking lot

GOLDEN, Colo. — One person was killed and seven others were injured when a motorist drove through a crowd gathered outside a Colorado bar early Sunday, authorities said.

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Officers responded to a call at 1:43 a.m. MDT of a hit-and-run crash in the parking lot of Rock Rest Lodge in Golden, KUSA-TV reported.

According to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, four men were taken to area hospitals with serious injuries and three others sustained minor injuries, The Denver Post reported. The victims, who include employees of the bar, have not been publicly identified, according to the newspaper.

According to the sheriff’s office, there was a “verbal altercation” between two groups that was broken up by the bar’s bouncers, KDVR-TV reported. One of the parties was taken to the back of the bar, the television station reported.

The other party included three men, who all entered a Chevrolet Silverado, according to KDVR. The driver, Ruben Marquez, 29, then allegedly drove the vehicle into the crowd.

Marquez, along with the registered owner of the Silverado, 25-year-old Ernesto DeJesus Avila, were arrested, according to the Post. Avila was a passenger in the truck, the sheriff’s office said. A third man, who was also a passenger in the truck, will not be charged.

Marquez is facing charges of first-degree murder, three counts of first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault, the Post reported. Avila is facing charges of accessory to first-degree murder and six counts of accessory to first- and second-degree assault.

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