Who are the Denver shooting suspects? Gunmen identified as nine wounded near Nuggets' Ball Arena

Denver shooting suspects Ricardo Miquel Vazquez and Raoul Jones were arrested after they opened fire near the Nuggets' Ball Arena. The shooting wounded nine basketball fans who had gathered to celebrate the NBA finals win on Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Trigger warning: This article contains references to mass shootings. Reader discretion is advised.

Police said that the mass shooting occurred in the early hours of Tuesday morning after Denver Nuggets’ won their first NBA championship. It took place in the 2000 Block of Market Street in the Mile High City. Police said the celebration of their first win spilled out into the streets prompting officers to cordon off many areas in the city.

Authorities revealed that the crowd had thinned out when the gunmen fired twenty rounds in the 2000 Block of Market Street in the Mile High City, injuring nine people at the scene.

Police investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting said that the incident was potentially drug-related. They noted that they had recovered a significant amount of cash and fentanyl pills from the crime scene. Police confirmed that the shooting was unassociated with the NBA celebrations.

Raoul Jones (Image via SongsRadio/Twitter)

Authorities revealed that 22-year-old Ricardo Miquel Vazquez, who sustained a gunshot wound, and Raoul Jones, 33, were taken into custody at the scene. Police noted that it was likely there were more suspects involved in the incident. Denver Police Commander Matt Clark said:

"While we know some of the offenders were injured by gunfire, we also know that several innocent people who were in the area were hit by rounds that were fired."

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Denver shooting suspects charged as nine injured near Nuggets' Ball Arena

In a press conference on Tuesday, June 13, Denver Police Commander Matt Clark announced that Denver shooting suspects were identified as Ricardo Miquel Vazquez and Raoul Jones. Ricardo, 22, and Raoul, 33, were taken into custody.

Clark, who described the Denver shooting as a potential drug-related incident, said that the suspects were charged with possession of a weapon by a previous offender and possession of a controlled substance.

Clark disclosed that five weapons were recovered from the scene and are currently being tested to determine whether they were fired during the shooting.

As authorities continue to investigate the case, in a statement via Twitter, police described the Denver shooting case as “complex’ and in the early stages of the investigation.

Meanwhile, Denver Health Medical Center trauma surgeon Eric Campion while providing an update on the wounded patients said that of the nine people shot, five remain hospitalized and noted that they were all in stable condition.

CNN citing Gun Violence Archive reported that this year there have been 291 mass shootings in the US in which four or more people were shot, excluding the shooter.