Denver police have arrested a man who they think drove through a crowd of people in LoDo and struck two people last month.
Manuel David Saucedo, 34, was arrested on Sept. 10 for leaving the scene of an accident, a felony. The city's district attorney charge Saucedo with four crimes total, including first degree assault and leaving the scene of accident, both felonies. Video of the incident circulated on Twitter and showed a car hitting two people near 20th and Market Street as people poured onto the street following closing time. Saucedo was also charged with third-degree assault and driving under restraint.
Saucedo was arrested less than two week after a judge signed a warrant for his arrest, according to a police affidavit.
One victim suffered a "brain bleed" from the incident and a laceration on his head and shoulder, the report said. The second victim had injures to his right ankle, hip, elbow and shoulder.
According to the affidavit, officers saw a fight involving 12 to 15 people near a gold-colored 4-door sedan parked in the middle of Market Street. Officers then saw a man get back into the car and speed through the nearby intersection and hit two people. The driver fled without providing "the required information or medical assistance," according to the police report. Both people were taken to Denver Health Medical Center for treatment. The affidavit does not list a motive for the fight.
Officers got cell phone video and written statements from several witnesses at the scene. They also reviewed videos posted on social media. Officers spoke to one person who told police he had been inside the gold car but had gotten out to try and stop the fight. He wasn't in the car when it sped off from the scene, but he helped identify the driver as Saucedo.
The department got numerous tips from callers who said they had video and photos of the incident. At least three callers gave police license plate numbers matching the one police had obtained at the scene. Another caller said friends, including Saucedo, had been downtown that night and identified him as a driver of the gold car.
