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Police: Aurora man hit with his own stolen truck

Surveillance video of stolen truck hit and run in Aurora
Posted at 10:26 PM, Jun 01, 2022
and last updated 2022-06-02 00:28:01-04

AURORA, Colo. — The Aurora Police Department is asking for the public's help as officers investigate a stolen truck and hit-and-run from Memorial Day. The victim was hit by his own truck as he attempted to stop the thief from driving off, and suffered four broken ribs, according to family.

The victim asked Denver7 to not publish his name, but did give permission to interview and publicly identify his son, John Wanberg.

Wanberg says his father was running a quick errand Memorial Day morning, dropping off some trash in a lot off Kingston Street in Aurora. He left the truck idling while he opened the gate to the lot and began to unload the trash, Wanberg says, when the thief entered the alley and made off with the truck.

“My dad saw the car was rolling and thought he’d forgotten to put it in gear,” Wanberg said. “And so he comes running after it in order to stop it from rolling into traffic. And then it stops in the road, the guy makes full eye contact with him, and just runs him down.”

His father’s four broken ribs are expected to take about 12 weeks to recover, Wanberg says. The family is now working with Aurora police to find the stolen truck and the man responsible.

In the video above, you will see surveillance video that captures the incident, as well as the events leading up to it. Noteworthy, Wanberg says, is the fact that the man was walking with a dog before the theft.

“The guy who stole [the truck] was walking his dog, he’s not coming from far away,” he said. “And so, it just really seems to me like as a community, you know, someone knows something. Someone has seen this man before. Someone has seen him walking his dog.”

Aurora police say a suspect has not yet been identified and they are still investigating. If you recognize the man, or have seen a 1992 Toyota Truck with Colorado license plate KOM057, you are asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tips can also be made online.

“As a community, it feels like we should be able to say enough is enough and to do our best to take them off the streets,” Wanberg said.