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JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — Investigators say they are still looking for whomever was involved in a string of crimes Wednesday night that resulted in the death of a 20-year-old after she was struck and killed by a large rock while driving.

While the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office originally said they had located a Dodge pickup truck that may have been involved, they said just before 10 p.m. Thursday that they “positively confirmed” that the truck and its owner “are not involved in the crime series related to the death of Alexa Bartell.”

The crimes occurred on Wednesday night starting at 10 p.m., according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Bartell, 20, of Arvada, was driving northbound near the 10600 block of Indiana Street. JCSO believes the suspects threw a large rock either from a vehicle or the side of the road at Bartell’s car.

Investigators say the rock hit Bartell, and she was killed.

Jefferson County Sheriff's Office provided FOX31 with a photo of Bartell's windshield to show the damage the rock caused leading to her death
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office provided FOX31 with a photo of Bartell’s windshield to show the damage the rock caused leading to her death (Photo credit: Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office)

Moments before she was killed, Bartell was on the phone with a friend when the call went silent.

“Her friend was worried, so her friend used an app to track her phone, drove to the location where it looked like Alexa’s phone was just sitting, just sitting still,” JSCO Public Information Officer Jacki Kelley said. “She discovered that Alexa’s car had gone off the road on Indiana into a field. And then she discovered her body inside.”

This was not the first instance of rocks being thrown at cars that night. A total of five incidents were reported.

Timeline of the crime spree

  • 10:04 p.m.: Westminster – 100th Avenue and Simms Street, rock through a windshield, driver was uninjured
  • 10:26 p.m.: Arvada – Highway 93 at Highway 72, rock through windshield, minor injuries to driver
  • 10:30 p.m.: Boulder County – McCaslin Boulevard and South Indiana Street (entrance to the Rock Creek neighborhood), rock through windshield, minor injuries to driver
  • 10:31 p.m.: Boulder County – McCaslin Boulevard and Indiana Street (entrance to the Rock Creek neighborhood) rock hit a Toyota 4Runner, caused body damage to the vehicle, driver uninjured
  • 10:45 p.m.: Jefferson County – 10600 block of Indiana Street, rock through windshield of a yellow Chevy Spark, driver killed

“These are not games, these are people’s lives and what happened last night should never have happened,” Kelley said. “We don’t know who these suspects are, why they’re trying to do this, but they killed somebody last night and we want to know who they are.”

Now, JCSO is working with the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Arvada Police and Westminster Police to gather information. They believe there may be more victims.

If you know anything about these crimes or the suspects who may be involved, you are asked to call the JCSO tip line at 303-271-5612. If you have home security or dash cameras that may have caught the crimes, deputies want to talk to you.

FOX31’s Lanie Lee Cook contributed to this report.