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After several hours, the suspect released his 6-year-old daughter. Police negotiators continued trying to coax him to give himself up. But when that didn’t happen, after about four hours, an internal Aurora police report says “Decision made to vacate.”
Aurora police had their man cornered. On Sept. 24 they responded to a home in the Conservatory neighborhood for what they described as a “felony child abuse investigation.” They said the homeowner, Eric Burns, 39, “had a valid misdemeanor no bond DV (domestic violence) warrant out of Denver.” Additionally, APD believed Burns had assaulted his son and abused his daughter.
The SWAT team was called and a standoff ensued.
After several hours, Burns released his 6-year-old daughter. Police negotiators continued trying to coax Burns to give himself up. But when that didn’t happen, after about four hours, an internal Aurora police report says “Decision made to vacate.” Dozens of officers, negotiators and command officers packed up and left Burns in his home, CBS Denver reports.
What the Aurora police reportedly did not know during the standoff was that Burns also was wanted for a felony kidnapping warrant issued by Black Hawk police.
Aurora police say they have not been able to locate Burns since the standoff.
The department declined to be interviewed by local media but released a statement saying, “Members of our community and across the nation have made it very clear that they want their police department to respond differently to some incidents, particularly when there is a possibility of using serious force against a subject.” The statement went on to say “avoiding unnecessary confrontations was now a top priority for the department.”
“Sometimes this means walking away from a situation and utilizing investigative resources to apprehend persons at a later time,” said the APD statement.
