Last week, Denver police arrested two men following a disturbing incident where a roommate reported being kidnapped and subjected to violence. The victim approached a Denver police station on October 17, revealing that he had been held against his will for two days by his four roommates. During this time, he was allegedly assaulted and had one of his fingers amputated.
Fortunately, after two days of captivity, the victim managed to escape. Authorities were alerted to the situation when they received a tip and conducted a welfare check at the location where the victim had been held on October 16. Despite not having full consent or conclusive evidence of a crime to support a search warrant, officers took action based on the victim's account.
Following the welfare check, the suspects reportedly left the location, allowing the victim to flee hours later. Subsequently, on October 18, two of the victim's roommates, identified as Jose Pineda-Moreno, 19, and Darwin Veliz-Gonzalez, 34, were arrested. They are facing charges including first-degree kidnapping with bodily injury, first-degree assault causing disfigurement, and criminal extortion.
Authorities are still working to identify two additional suspects and are investigating whether the incident may have been gang-related. However, they believe it to be an isolated occurrence. The citizenship status of the arrested individuals has not been disclosed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as the agency only reveals such information when there is a specific indication of noncitizenship.
Currently, Veliz-Gonzalez is being held on a $510,000 bond, while Pineda-Moreno's bond is set at $100,000. Both are scheduled to appear in court on Friday to face the charges brought against them.
