AURORA, Colo. — An RTD passenger who just exited a bus on East Colfax Avenue in Aurora was run over and killed by the same bus as it left the stop Wednesday morning, according to the Aurora Police Department.
Police said the driver unknowingly ran the man over after the victim appeared to suffer a medical episode, collapsed, and fell under the bus shortly after exiting. The bus continued the route, and the driver was later tracked down and questioned at Union Station.
The victim was found in the roadway after police responded to the area of E. Colfax Ave. and N. Havana St. around 6:25 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene. His identity has not been released.
When officers arrived, they began interviewing witnesses, who told them an RTD bus may have been involved. Surveillance video later confirmed what witnesses saw.
The video shows the man exiting the rear doors of the bus. He is then seen collapsing after suffering from what appears to be an unknown medical episode, and falls to the ground and under the bus, according to police.
The video then shows the bus, after passengers were done exiting and entering, pulling away from the stop, the driver not knowing that the man was underneath, the department said in a release.
Officers later found the driver and the bus at Union Station, where evidence linking the bus to the incident was visible outside the bus.
There were no reports of arrests or citations issued in connection with the investigation at this time. Police do not believe drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash, but the driver of the bus volunteered and submitted to a blood draw to rule out any impairments.
Police are asking anyone who may have dash-cam footage of the incident or may have witnessed the crash who has not yet spoken to police to contact the Aurora Police Department.
