US: Four dead including gunman in Colorado Springs shooting spree

Three people were killed after a gunman went on a shooting spree in Colorado Springs, US, on Halloween. The suspect was later fatally shot by the police on Saturday (31 October).

According to police, they were responding to reports of shots being fired at Colorado Springs, when they came across the suspect, who opened fire at them. They retaliated and the gunman was killed in the exchange of fire.

The number of those injured in the incident is unknown. Reports suggest that Matt Abshire, 21, informed the Colorado Springs Gazette after he saw a man shoot someone with a rifle from his apartment window. He ran to the street and called the police. The gunman also shot two women, said Abshire.

According to another eyewitness, the suspect was walking down the street carrying a rifle. "What I had saw was that he [the gunman] kind of like spun around and that's when they said, 'Drop it,' and he kind of like went to aim and that's when they shot him down," Aaron Nicks told KOAA station.

After shooting at the victims, the suspect was calmly walking down the street when "they [police] yelled, 'Put the gun down,' and he turned around, and that's when they shot at him a good 20 times," Alisha Jaynes told KKTV 11 News. "There was a lot of gunfire," she added.

Colorado Springs police office, lieutenant Catherine Buckley, said that several major downtown streets in Colorado Springs were shut down for most of the day as investigators were trying to figure out what had happened. There were at least three crime scenes, sheriff's spokeswoman Jacqueline Kirby said.

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office will be handling the investigation. The officers involved in the shooting have been placed on routine administrative leave.