ARVADA, Colo. (KDVR) — An extensive line of cars followed a hearse transporting the body of a fallen Arvada officer to the coroner’s office after he was shot and killed on Monday.
“It’s heartbreaking, they know any day they leave their home and they can face something they don’t know if they will return from it,” said Daniel Mondragon, an Arvada resident.
The officer, identified Monday night as Gordon Beesley, was shot and killed in Olde Town Arvada along with a civilian and suspected gunman.
Beesley had been with the Arvada Police Department for 19 years. He was a School Resource Officer at Oberon Middle School and was working patrol while school was out for the summer.
Several 911 calls were received at 1:30 p.m. about shots fired and police were already on scene responding to a suspicious incident near the library
Dozens of community members from Arvada gathered at the corner of Ralston and Olde Wadsworth and waited for the procession in honor of Beesley to begin.
“My sister is a cop here. It’s close to home. We have to support them. It’s kind of sad,” said Arvada resident Lube Lechugua.
Brent Welty was in Olde Town and within a few feet of where the shooting happened.
“I saw three people dead in the street of Olde Town Arvada, and one of them was a police officer,” Welty said.
“I guess it happens anywhere. You never think it will be you,” Welty said.
The procession for the officer was about 10 miles from the scene to the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office.
“This is a tight community,” said a man holding an American flag along the procession route. “It’s a real sad day.”
Donations for Officer Beesley’s family and funeral expenses can be made through the Colorado Fallen Hero Foundation website. The Arvada Police Department has also set up a web form for people wishing to make non-monetary donations.