DENVER — A shooting in downtown Denver amid fans celebrating the Nuggets' first NBA championship victory was likely sparked by a drug deal gone wrong and left 10 people wounded, including one of two suspected shooters, police said Tuesday.
All of the injured are expected to survive, including five or six people that police believe were bystanders not involved in the drug deal, Chief Ron Thomas said at a news conference. He said 20 rounds were fired at the scene, roughly a mile from Ball Arena, where the Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat on Monday night.
The shooting happened at around 12:30 a.m. — about 3 1/2 hours after the game — the Denver Police Department said in a statement.
Earlier Tuesday, police spokesperson Doug Schepman said the shooting was “in the area where we had the largest gathering of folks celebrating during the night,” but the crowd had “diminished quite a bit at that point.”
The gunfire broke out in downtown Denver’s LoDo district, which is known for its restaurants and nightlife.
Yellow police tape sealed off the area overnight Tuesday as investigators scoured the scene, which was dotted with evidence markers and what appeared to be detritus left over from the celebrations, including an e-scooter and a green rental bike.
Eight people were hospitalized at Denver Health Medical Center — one in critical condition, one in fair and six in good condition, spokesperson Heather Burke said. She said questions about the two additional wounded people should be directed to police.