PD refuses to rule out Loveland shooting link

Law enforcement agencies on Thursday afternoon would not tie Wednesday's fatal shooting of a Loveland man to two other shootings in Northern Colorado that have happened in the past two months.

But they also would not discount that the previous attacks — one of them fatal — are linked to the fatal shooting of William Connole, 65, who was gunned down about 10:52 p.m. Wednesday while walking down a typically busy Loveland street.

The Larimer County Coroner's Office announced Connole's cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest. Law enforcement officials gave no further details of Wednesday's shooting, including number of times Connole was shot or whether Wednesday's attack matched ballistic information from the other shootings.

"There is no positive link ... but we have not been able to rule out a link, either,'' said David Moore, a sheriff's office spokesman who is now the public information officer for an investigating task force.

The Loveland Police Department engaged members of that special task force, which includes the FBI, Larimer County Sheriff's Office, Windsor Police Department and Larimer and Weld District Attorney's Offices. That task force was established last week after law enforcement linked the two previous shootings.

MAP: Northern Colorado shootings

"There are enough likenesses to this case that we as an agency immediately reached out to the task force,'' said Loveland Police Chief Luke Hecker, adding that law enforcement is throwing an "unprecedented" amount of resources at the cases.

Wednesday's shooting near East First Street and St. Louis Avenue was the latest to put Northern Colorado on edge since 47-year-old John Jacoby's body was found on a Windsor roadside May 18, shot twice. That shooting happened just 4 miles east of the location where 20-year-old Cori Romero was shot at twice while driving onto Interstate 25 near Harmony Road on April 22. She was hit in the neck but is recovering from her injuries.

"There's an opportunity to feel fear because we don't know if this is connected to the other shootings,'' Hecker said, urging residents to stay extra vigilant, travel together and report suspicious activity immediately. "There is a tendency for fear.''

While many residents fear a serial shooter may be on the loose, despite the similarities and timing, law enforcement did not describe the three shootings as serial.

The FBI, according to its website, defines serial as "the unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s) in separate events.''

"It's a shooting attack,'' FBI representative Thomas Ravenelle said at Thursday's news conference, answering a flurry of questions about whether a sniper was targeting people across the region, as has happened in other high-profile cases nationally.

The briefing was widely attended by at least a dozen media outlets, including national networks. Officials remained tight-lipped and abruptly brought it to an end after just a few questions.

Investigators are also withholding information about the type of weapon used in each case and would not reveal anything more about what evidence has been collected, whether a suspect profile had been established, what tactics and tools are being used or how many federal agents have been assigned to the ongoing criminal probe.

That makes sense in cases like this, said Mark Pogrebin, a criminal justice professor at CU Denver.

"It's much better to keep these things under wraps until you can get enough evidence to get the district attorneys to arrest someone and indict them," he said. What makes this case strange is that nobody has yet called in a tip that has led to an arrest. That, coupled with the apparent randomness of it all, is likely posing a unique challenge to law enforcement.

"That's what's making these so difficult. There's no modus operandi. There's no rationale for what (the suspect is) doing," he said.

The area where Wednesday's shooting happened is west of Osborn Park and southeast of the intersection of U.S. 34 and U.S. Highway 287. It is a residential neighborhood about a mile from downtown shops, and single family homes line the busy street. The location differs from that of the other two linked shootings — a highway on-ramp and a quiet country road.

"Most people around here have lived here forever," said Hector Gonzalez, a mechanic who works just a few doors down from where the man's body was located. "It's a little scary."

Bouquets of flowers and a lone candle were left at the intersection Thursday afternoon. Passers-by looked at the memorial before being distracted by the television live trucks that flooded the neighborhood.

Anyone with information about the shootings is urged to call Larimer County Crime Stoppers at 970-221-6868 or to text 274637 and start the message with NOCO, followed by the message.

"We'd rather have people call and it turn out to be nothing than not call and have something bad happen," Moore said after Thursday's news conference.

Reporter Jason Pohl covers breaking news for the Coloradoan. Follow him on Twitter: @pohl_jason.

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