A gunman broke into the Colorado Supreme Court and took a security guard hostage while firing multiple gunshots before being arrested by the local police.
According to the Colorado State Patrol (CSP), the incident occurred at 1.15 a.m. on Tuesday after the suspect, identified the suspect as 44-year-old Brandon Olsen, broke into the court from a window after being involved in a two-car crash outside the building, reports Xinhua news agency.
The suspect allegedly held an unarmed guard with the CSP’s Capitol Security Unit at gunpoint after entering the building, then obtained keys from the hostage and proceeded into other parts of the building.
He then fired multiple shots inside the building before voluntarily surrendering at around 3 a.m.
No injuries were reported.
The suspect’s motive is still unclear.
An arrest affidavit provided by police indicated Olsen cooperated with interviews, but all of his statements were redacted.
The break-in was most likely not related to a 4-3 ruling from Colorado’s highest court on December 19, 2023 which ordered to remove former President Donald Trump’s name from the state’s presidential primary ballot, Colorado police said, citing a preliminary investigation led by the Denver Police Department.
The FBI had previously said it was working with Colorado law enforcement to investigate reports of violent threats against the Colorado Supreme Court justices following their ruling to remove Trump from the presidential ballot.
