AURORA — A man at a weekend Colorado protest who shot and wounded two demonstrators after he apparently aimed at a Jeep driving toward protesters has been arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide, authorities said.
Police in the Denver suburb of Aurora said Samuel Young, 23, was arrested on Monday after authorities made public a picture of a person of interest in the case and sought help from the public to identify him.
Authorities said they are still trying to determine why the driver of the Jeep appeared to be driving toward the protesters on a highway as they demonstrated the death of Elijah McClain, a Black man who died after being stopped by police in Aurora last year.
One male protester was shot in the leg and another suffered a grazing wound to his head, police said.
Young was being held Tuesday in the Jefferson County jail after being arrested by police in Wheat Ridge, another Denver suburb, according to jail records. He was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday and it was not clear if he had a lawyer representing him who could speak on his behalf.
Witnesses told Sentinel Colorado that the shooter seemed to be aiming at the Jeep as it drove toward the demonstrators. The Jeep came close to them but did not hit them.
Police seized the Jeep as evidence and have said they are trying to determine if it went on the highway before or after authorities closed the highway to traffic because of the demonstration,
Protest organizers on Monday criticized police Monday for not arresting the driver, who has not been identified.