Aurora, Colorado — On October 2, 2022, at approximately 4:30 p.m. an ADMIT client, “J.M.”1 called Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Kraig Conger and expressed concern that 35-year-old Alexander Collins was acting strange—that he had stayed up all night drinking alcohol and smoking “blues,” street slang for fentanyl. According to J.M., Collins repeatedly stated, “I’m not going back to jail.” Deputy Conger was not working at the time, so he notified Deputy Anthony Archuleta of the information and requested Deputy Archuleta respond to the facility to check on Collins and place him on a detoxification hold. At approximately 5:30 p.m., Deputy Conger called J.M. to give Deputy Archuleta access to the facility. J.M. advised that Collins left the facility and went to the bus stop located at the corner of westbound Colfax Avenue and Moline Street. J.M. further reported that he could see Collins with a woman and that he had a “butcher knife” in his pocket.
Collins entered the Moline Corner Store and confronted the clerk by demanding cigarettes. The clerk recognized Collins as a regular and saw that he was holding a large knife. The clerk placed a box of cigarettes on the counter and asked Collins if he was going to pay for the cigarettes. Collins did not respond and simply took the cigarettes, put the knife in his pocket, and walked out of the store. The clerk locked the door and called 911. Collins proceeded north across Colfax Avenue to the bus stop on the northwest corner of Colfax Avenue and Moline Street. Collins boarded the westbound RTD bus from the front without paying bus fare. The bus driver attempted to confront Collins but Collins ignored him and continued to walk down the aisle to the back of the bus. The bus driver stopped the bus because he heard sirens and saw emergency vehicles approach.
Uniformed Aurora Police Officers responded to the location and surrounded the bus. Deputy Archuleta advised Aurora Police K9 Officer Robert Wong what had occurred, identified Collins, and advised that Collins was armed with the knife inside the bus. Officer Wong saw Collins inside the bus and noticed passengers moving away from Collins. Officer Wong drew his handgun, pointed it at Collins and ordered him to exit the bus. Collins said “No” and started moving toward the back of the bus in the direction of the passengers. Officer Kevin Manley boarded the rear door of the bus.Officer Wong boarded the bus from the front door with his K9 officer. Officer Wong observed a knife in Collins’s back pocket. Officer Wong released his dog to take down Collins. The dog bit Collins from behind but did not take him down. Both Officer Wong and Officer Manley saw Collins holding a large knife in his right hand as he continued to advance toward the passengers huddled at the back of the bus.
As Collins continued to walk toward the back of the bus with Officer Wong grabbing him from behind, Officer Manley deployed his Taser to stop Collins. The Taser was ineffective. Officers Jordan Diekneit and Jason Oviatt stood outside the bus at the open rear door as Officers Wong and Manley struggled to control Collins inside the bus. They heard officers give commands, “Get off the bus!” and “Drop the knife!” while the dog made contact with Collins. They observed Collins armed with the knife as he continued to move toward the passengers on the back of the bus. As Collins pulled away from Officers Wong and Manley, Officers Diekneit and Oviatt fired their handguns at Collins, shooting him in the left side of the lower chest and abdomen.
Collins was subsequently removed from the bus and officers rendered medical aid. Collins died as a result of the gunshot wounds.
News by Breaking911
