Denver man charged with attempted murder and several other crimes for mid-May incident in Berthoud – Loveland Reporter-Herald

A Denver man has been charged with attempted murder, along with several other crimes, for an incident in May. The incident began near Interstate 25 in Johnstown and ended in Berthoud, where he allegedly tried to run over a deputy before causing a crash that injured several people and killed a dog.

Shortly after midnight on May 18, a Larimer County Sheriff’s Office deputy was near I-25 and Colo. 56 in Weld County and saw a vehicle traveling on the interstate and turning onto the state highway without a license plate, according to a Monday LCSO news release. As the deputy initiated a traffic stop, the driver of the gray sedan eluded officers and headed west on Colo. 56, where he reportedly exceeded 100 mph.

While officers pursued the sedan westbound, another officer prepared to install spikes at the intersection of First Street and Mountain Avenue in downtown Berthoud. When the sedan reached that intersection, the driver allegedly swerved toward the officer installing the spikes, forcing the officer to “take cover to avoid being struck,” the release states.

The driver then swerved again, causing the vehicle to roll over and land on top of an LCSO K9 vehicle, which totaled the vehicle and continued rolling before coming to a stop on the road. Although an LCSO K9 was in the vehicle at the time, he was not injured in the incident.

Officers approached the vehicle and rescued the occupants, including two adult passengers and the driver, identified as 38-year-old Van Radley. All three occupants of the vehicle were injured in the crash and transported to an area hospital. According to the release, officers also found a dog inside the vehicle that had died in the crash.

No passersby or first responders were injured in the accident.

“This shocking act of reckless violence threatened the lives of community members and first responders and unfortunately also took the life of an innocent animal,” Sheriff John Feyen said in the press release. “We cannot allow dangerous offenders to continue causing harm without fear of consequences.”

According to the press release, officers learned that Radley, who initially gave a false name, had an arrest warrant for a traffic violation and a probation warrant for a felony in Weld County.

After leaving the hospital with his accident injuries, Radley was booked into the Larimer County Jail on his warrants and new charges. Those charges include attempted first-degree intentional murder (Class 2 felony); attempted first-degree intentional murder with utter indifference (Class 2 felony); second-degree kidnapping (Class 4 felony); fleeing with a vehicle involving personal injury (Class 4 felony); aggravated cruelty to animals (Class 4 felony); reckless assault with a vehicle (Class 5 felony); falsely providing identity information to police (Class 6 felony); two counts of driving while license revoked (Class 1 traffic offense), and reckless driving (Class 2 traffic offense).

Because the incident began in Weld County, Radley was transported to the Weld County Jail and arraigned in the 19th Judicial District. He was given bail of $75,000 cash or surety and is scheduled to appear in Weld County Court at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.