Four Dead, Including Suspected Gunman, After Shooting Spree in Colorado Springs

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (TheBlaze/AP) — Four people are dead, including a suspected gunman, following a shooting spree in Colorado Springs on Saturday that ended in a gun battle between police and the suspect.

Lt. Catherine Buckley said officers were responding to a report of shots being fired when they spotted a suspect matching the description of the person they were trying to find. Buckley said the suspect opened fire, and police fired back.

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Witnesses described a chaotic scene as the suspect went down the street with a rifle.

Matt Abshire, 21, told the Colorado Springs Gazette he looked outside his apartment window and saw a man shoot someone with a rifle. Abshire said he ran to the street and followed the man and called police.

The man suddenly turned and fired more shots, hitting two women, Abshire said. Their names and conditions were not available.

Alisha Jaynes told KKTV-TV she was at an ATM when she saw a man with a gun walking calmly down the street.

"Me and my son were at the 7-Eleven using the ATM...as soon as I walked outside I heard six gunshots up the street. ... We see the cop cars swarm in," Jaynes told the station. "I saw the guy with the gun just walking with the gun in his hand. ... Just calm, standing there with a gun in his hand."

"They yelled, 'Put the gun down,' and he turned around, and that's when they shot at him a good 20 times," witness Aaron Nicks said. "There was a lot of gunfire."

Buckley said the crime scene covered several major downtown streets. Those streets were shut down most of the day while investigators tried to figure out what happened.

Buckley said the investigation of the police shooting has been turned over to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.

El Paso County sheriff's spokeswoman Jacqueline Kirby said there are at least three crime scenes.

This is breaking news; updates will be added.

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