GREELEY, Colo. — A man is dead following an altercation with police on the University of Northern Colorado campus.
Around 8:12 p.m. Wednesday, Greeley Police attempted to pull 41-year-old old Theodore Rybus, who had an active felony warrant for motor vehicle theft, 9 News reports. Rybus refused to stop and officers discontinued the traffic stop.
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Officers later found the suspect on foot at the University of Northern Colorado and ordered bystanders to leave the area. While trying to contact the suspect, he allegedly brandished a gun. Two officers gave verbal commands to drop the gun but he did not comply. According to the 19th Judicial Critical Incident Response Team, two other officers were approaching the area from the opposite side and said the man still had the gun in his hand as he approached the area of the Garden Theatre.
Rybus then reportedly turned toward officers with the gun in his hand, and an officer radioed he had been shot at. However, it was determined that the gunfire was from two officers who had fired their guns at Rybus. It is still unclear if Rybus fired at any of the officers.
The Weld County Coroner’s Office reported that Rybus had been hit by officers once and suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead as a result of his self-inflicted injury.
While the university was already on summer break, some students were on campus for summer classes.
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“We recognize that any such incident is unsettling, and we are thankful that the impact to our campus community was limited. The incident occurred in the evening during summer break, in an outdoor area of campus away from classrooms and residence halls when campus activity is significantly reduced,” UNC said in a statement. “There was no impact to university operations or the broader campus community and the individual involved was not affiliated with the university.”
Anyone with additional information about the incident is asked to contact Weld County Sheriff’s Office Sargent Gerald Porter 970-400-5392 or Detective Leslie Schmidt-Johnson with the Windsor Police Department at 970-674-6446.
