DENVER -- Denver police captured escaped murderer Jody Aquirre Thursday afternoon. He was taken into custody around 2:30 p.m. in Lakewood apartment of a relative.

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Dramatic Capture Details

Aguirre, 40 (pictured, left) did not resist arrest, 7NEWS reported. He was arrested in an apartment at 6089 West 18th Street. That's near 18th Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard, just inside the Lakewood city limits.

"It was the apartment of his cousin, Rebecca Marin," said Alison Morgan, of the Colorado Department of Corrections.

Lakewood SWAT officers were assisted by Denver police and Department of Corrections officers in the arrest.

"They busted down the top apartment door and yelled 'Denver Police' and grabbed their man and took him away," said Misty Gomez-Medina, who lives in the apartment next door.

When he arrived at Denver Police Headquarters, Aquirre was shirtless, riding in the back of a police car, according to a 7NEWS photojournalist who saw him. Aquirre was questioned and transfered to the custody of the Department of Corrections. Will be transfered to the SuperMax facility in Canon City, Colo., according to Morgan.

He initially faces charges of escape. It was not clear what charges, if any, his cousin may face.

We will look at any appropriate criminal charges that need to be filed," Morgan said.

The Escape

According to police, Aguirre stowed away Wednesday in a large horse trailer containing saddles made by prison inmates at the state prison in Buena Vista, Colo. The saddles were being delivered Wednesday to Colorado Saddlery at 1631 15th Street in lower downtown Denver.

Mert Janssen, 61, a driver for Colorado Saddlery Co., said he has made the weekly run to the prison in Buena Vista every Wednesday for three years.

A handful of inmates helped him load the saddles into the truck from inside a gated enclosure at the prison. Janssen doesn't recall seeing Aguirre among them, but said he couldn't be sure.

Colorado Saddlery employee Shirley Kuehn, 32, was trying to open the trailer door around noon Wednesday when it flew open.

"I heard Shirley scream that there was a man inside," Janssen said.

"I opened the trailer door, and there was a guy in it," said Kuehn. "He just told me to shut up and took off, and I alerted the driver."

Aguirre has not been seen since.

Police set up a wide perimeter in the downtown area as they searched for the suspect.

Aguirre is described as 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighing 190 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing glasses when he fled. Witnesses said he has a scar on his left hand and a scar on his stomach.

When he fled, he was not wearing a shirt and had on only blue jeans.

Police had said Aguirre should be considered dangerous and urged the public to take all necessary precautions.

"He's not dangerous at all. He just wants to get away and live. He's very caring," said Amber Laforett (pictured, right), his daughter, who lives in Denver.

Aguirre was convicted in Denver County and was serving life in prison with no possibility for parole for two counts of murder, three counts of arson and two counts of burglary. He was convicted of masterminding the arson fire that killed Denver firefighter Mark Langvardt in 1992.

Langvardt, a 16-year veteran of the Denver Fire Department, was on a search-and-rescue mission in the building at 1625 S. Broadway when the floor behind him collapsed, trapping him in a small room. His air tank ran out before fellow firefighters could reach him.

The building belonged to Aguirre's former boss. At his sentencing in 1994, Aguirre's family blasted the criminal-justice system because the man who confessed to starting the fire, Frankie Martinez, cooperated with prosecutors and testified against Aguirre in exchange for a lesser sentence of 10 years in prison for manslaughter.

Aguirre has family in Denver and police officers fanned out to those locations to see if Aguirre had fled there. A $7,000 reward was offered for information leading to his capture.

"We've been conducting dozens of interviews, developing our own leads and that's what lead to his arrest," said Morgan.

She also said four investigators were at the Buena Vista prison Thursday trying to find out how Agruirre managed to escape.

The Colorado Department of Corrections said Aguirre didn't work in the area where the saddles are made and they didn't know how he got into the trailer.

"The saddle shop remains closed, pending the results of the investigation," said Morgan.

Jeff Van Scoyk, owner of Colorado Saddlery, said the prison had been working with his company for 12 years.

"It's a terrible thing," he said. "It's the first time we had any kind of problem."