USA: Police cars, fire trucks and ambulances are on standby as they prepare to do a controlled detonation of the Colorado suspect's booby trapped apartment.
Record ID:
324620
USA: Police cars, fire trucks and ambulances are on standby as they prepare to do a controlled detonation of the Colorado suspect's booby trapped apartment.
- Title: USA: Police cars, fire trucks and ambulances are on standby as they prepare to do a controlled detonation of the Colorado suspect's booby trapped apartment.
- Date: 21st July 2012
- Summary: AURORA, COLORADO (JULY 21, 2012) (REUTERS) WIDE OF EXTERIOR OF SUSPECT'S APARTMENT CLOSE UP OF SUSPECT'S APARTMENT'S BROKEN WINDOWS POLICE STANDING OUTSIDE SQUAD CARS POLICE WALKING AROUND APARTMENT BLOCK PAN FROM FIRE TRUCKS TO AMBULANCE VARIOUS OF FBI AND ATF STANDING BY CLOSE UP OF FIRE TRUCK FIRE TRUCK LADDER MOVING TOWARDS APARTMENT WINDOW EXTERIOR OF SUSPECT'S APARTMENT'S BROKEN WINDOWS WIDE OF APARTMENT EXTERIOR AND FIRE TRUCK LADDER
- Embargoed: 5th August 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Topics: Crime
- Reuters ID: LVAETAGE2ICCRJC1XOCV92MK0A3C
- Story Text: Police probing a Colorado shooting rampage prepared on Saturday (July 21) to send in a robot to detonate what they called a sophisticated booby-trap in the apartment of a man accused of killing 12 people at a screening of the new "Batman" film.
Authorities have gathered around the apartment of 24-year-old James Eagan Holmes who they accuse of storming into a theater in a suburban Denver multiplex showing "The Dark Knight Rises" just after midnight on Friday clad head-to-toe in black body armor and a gas mask and shooting seemingly at random.
The graduate student, who authorities said had dyed his hair red and called himself "The Joker" in a reference to Batman's comic-book nemesis, was taken into custody outside the theater minutes after the attack.
After his arrest, police found a set of explosives at his home and said his living room was found crisscrossed with trip wires connected to what appeared to be plastic bottles containing an unknown liquid.
Aurora Police Department Cassidee Carlson said authorities hoped to send a robot in to deactivate the trip wire but had no idea how long it would take to make the area safe.
"There is no timeline. I can't give you an endtime. We're hoping to get in there within the next hour. That's about the only time-- because we have no idea how long any of this is going to take, so I can't put an endtime to it because, of course, I emphasize again the importance of public safety," Carlson told reporters. "It's safe right now, with the evacuations; we don't need to rush anything and we're going to do our best and take our time to just keep it as safe as possible."
Authorities have evacuated the area and have brought in scores of police, investigators, law enforcement officials and explosives experts.
With Holmes in jail and awaiting an initial court appearance on Monday morning, police have declined to reveal what he has told investigators and would not discuss possible motives for the shooting rampage.
Witnesses at the movie theater told of a horrific scene, with dazed victims bleeding from bullet wounds, spitting up blood and crying for help. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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