Littleton police made an arrest early Tuesday morning of a 14-year-old boy accused of shooting and robbing a woman in Progress Park in Littleton Sunday evening.
The arrest was made after officers conducted a search warrant in the 1300 block of South Lowell Boulevard in Denver, police said. The suspect was taken into custody without incident and is charged with first-degree assault and aggravated robbery.
According to Littleton Police Department spokesperson Sheera Poelman, two suspects approached two women who were walking along Big Dry Creek Trail in Progress Park Sunday evening.
The suspect who was arrested, a 14-year-old who was described as a Hispanic male, asked one of the women for her purse. When she said no, he shot her in the leg and stole her purse. Officers responded to a call at 8:43 p.m. following the incident.
Police are still looking for a second person of interest who may have accompanied the 14-year-old boy. She is described as a teenage girl, according to police.
Ella Babeon, the daughter of the woman who was shot, said her mother is coming home June 14 after being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at a local hospital.
"She’s super excited to get discharged," Babeon said in an email, adding that her doctors say "she’s doing well and her mobility is excellent."
Babeon said her mother's shooter is "just a child" who "threw his whole life away."
"It’s heartbreaking but his actions have consequences," Babeon said. "We don’t know what drove him to do this but hopefully he will be able to turn his life around by the time he’s out of jail. We can only hope this is a second chance for him in the long run."
Poelman said an "incident like this in Littleton is more rare than it is common," though she said northeast Littleton, where Progress Park is located, does tend to see higher crime reports.
Police have increased patrols in the area, Poelman said, with more police activity in Progress Park "probably for the next few days because of this incident."
"We don't want people to be afraid but vigilant and alert," Poelman said, adding that if someone is ever approached by a person with a weapon it is best to give them what they ask.
"I would argue that your life is not worth a belonging," she said.
Poelman said the department would not release the police report yet citing a still-active investigation.
