Three people were detained overnight in Arvada in connection with the rock throwing incidents that killed Alexa Bartell, 20, and wounded others last week. The accused were apprehended at their homes: Joseph Koenig, Nicholas “Mitch” Karol-Chik, and Zachary Kwak.
“We have a safer community this morning because of it,” said Jacki Kelley, spokeswoman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
According to Jefferson County authorities, those detained are all 18 years old and face first-degree murder charges. They are high school seniors. One goes to Ralston Valley High education, another to Standley Lake High School in Westminster, and the third to online education.
They are expected to appear in court for the first time on Thursday.
Bartell, of Arvada, was murdered late at night on April 19 when a boulder shattered her windscreen as she drove on the 10600 block of Indiana Street between the Jefferson and Boulder county boundaries. Her car went off the road and ended up in a field. She was chatting to a friend on the phone when she was struck, and the phone fell silent.
Earlier that night, two more persons were injured in rock strikes. Authorities now identify the “large landscaping rocks” that impacted seven automobiles as “large landscaping rocks.” The suspects are said to have been in a moving car when the pebbles were hurled.
“These suspects went from place to place to place to place throwing large rocks through windshields of vehicles. We have not seen this before,” Kelley said.
The spree began just after 10 p.m. that night in Westminster at the junction of 100th Avenue and Simms Street, just north of Standley Lake. The final strike came roughly 2 miles away and 45 minutes later. That was the one who took Bartell’s life.
According to investigators, the thieves were driving a black 2016 Chevy Silverado. They are unsure if the driver was Koenig, Karol-Chik, or Kwak.
Kelley said the arrests came as a result of “cellphone device forensics and then supporting information from our public.” She wouldn’t elaborate on what that forensic evidence is, but she said more than 300 tips came in during the investigation.
“This information led us directly to them,” Kelley said.
The sheriff’s office first stated that Bartell’s family would speak about the tragedy on Wednesday afternoon, but that press conference was cancelled. Kelley stated that the family was relieved to learn about the arrests.