(LibertySons.org) – A local man reportedly broke into the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park near Glenwood Springs, Colorado, after hours on October 27. Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario told reporters that employees found the heavily armed man dead in a women’s restroom of a single gunshot wound to the head before the facility opened on Saturday morning along with a mysterious message.
Garfield Coroner Robert Glassmire identified the deceased intruder as Diego Barajas Medina, 20, of Carbondale, a nearby town. Glassmire is pursuing the investigation as a suicide case based on the evidence collected thus far. Crime scene analysts found Medina’s body near a message that read, “I’m not a killer. I just wanted to get into the caves,” but couldn’t confirm whether Medina wrote the note.
Vallario said investigators found Medina with two semi-automatic weapons — a handgun and a rifle — both ghost guns (firearms without traceable serial numbers). The intruder included multiple loaded magazines for both weapons and carried improvised explosive devices (IEDs), including pipe bombs. He wore tactical body armor, including what Vallario described as a ballistic helmet.
The sheriff described the gear and emblems on the clothing as similar to those worn by law enforcement SWAT team members. Investigators also found a number of “fake” weapons and ordinance. The findings prompted Vallario to keep the attraction closed and call in the Grand Junction Bomb Squad and the Garfield County All Hazard Response Team (AHRT) to sweep the park for any explosive devices in the caverns or on rides. Both teams gave an all-clear on October 29, and the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park reopened for business on October 30.
Walt Stowe, a spokesperson for the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office, released a statement warning the community of the potentially “devastating” attack Medina could have launched, considering the ammunition, weaponry, and munitions he amassed. Vallario had previously noted the park’s remote and inaccessible location would have complicated the situation for first responders, slowing them from providing help or accessing medical facilities.
Medina had no previous criminal record, and Vallario described him as “completely under the radar.”
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