A worker at an ICE detention facility in Colorado has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after police say a protester was shot outside the site.
Brandon Booth, 42, an employee of contractor GEO Group, was taken into custody in Aurora, east of Denver, at around 7.30pm on Thursday.
Aurora Police said the person who was shot was a woman who had participated in an anti-ICE demonstration in the area earlier that day.
‘Responding officers found two women, one of whom had suffered a gunshot wound to her lower body. The other woman was unharmed,’ the department said.
‘Additional officers in the area stopped a man in a vehicle a short distance away. The vehicle with the gun inside was subsequently seized.
‘The driver, identified as 42-year-old GEO Group employee Brandon Booth, was detained.’
Investigators said both women had earlier been involved in the protest outside Aurora’s ICE Processing Center on Oakland Street.
According to police, the demonstration blocked access to the facility, leaving Booth and other ICE center employees caught in traffic on Nome Street as they headed to work.
Brandon Booth, 42, who is employed by contractor GEO Group, was detained in Aurora, just east of Denver, at about 7.30pm on Thursday. He is pictured in his police booking photograph
Police said in a statement that the two female protesters ‘initiated a verbal confrontation and took pictures of the employees’ vehicles before walking away’.
‘At that point, Booth retrieved his personally owned pistol and fired a single shot in their direction, striking one of the women on her lower body,’ police said.
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‘Booth then got into his vehicle and drove out of the area before he was detained.’
Aurora Police detectives rushed to the scene, and booked Booth on probable cause of attempted second-degree murder, first degree assault, attempted first degree assault, felony menacing, and unlawful carrying of a concealed weapon.
The wounded woman was rushed to the hospital and treated for her injuries, which are not believed to be life threatening.
A GEO Group spokesperson said Booth has been placed on administrative leave.
‘We are aware that an off-duty Aurora ICE Processing Center employee was involved in a shooting incident,’ they said in a statement.
‘This individual has been placed on unpaid administrative leave, and we will fully cooperate with law enforcement.’
‘This is a tragedy on all fronts, and the Aurora Police Department will investigate this incident with the same commitment to transparency and integrity as we do all shootings,’ said Chief Todd Chamberlain.
‘We remain committed to ensuring an ethical, thorough, objective, and comprehensive review of this case.
‘Violence of any kind will not be tolerated in Aurora. Constitutional rights are a pivotal part of a just society – violence is not.’
Booth has not yet been formally charged, and the case is under investigation.
Anyone with any additional information about this incident, including any footage, is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-STOP.
This is a breaking news story with updates to follow.
