(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.) — A man has been arrested on a slew of charges after he was found in possession of realistic-looking gun replicas and a stolen car, and attempted to steal another car while evading deputies.
According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office (EPSO), around 6 a.m. on Thursday, March 27, a 911 call reported a man acting erratically with a rifle outside a convenience store in the 1500 block of Meadowbrook Parkway, near the intersection of Marksheffel Road and Highway 24. When deputies arrived on scene, they saw the suspect standing next to a car, though he ran when he saw law enforcement.
Deputies began searching for the suspect and set up a perimeter, and during that time, EPSO said the suspect tried to steal another car in Woolsey Heights. As deputies closed in on him, the suspect fled through a creek bed toward the Claremont Ranch neighborhood. He was soon captured on Dewhirst Drive.
The suspect, identified as 32-year-old Nathaniel Strawder, was found to have been in possession of realistic-looking replicas of a rifle and a handgun. The car he was found with at the convenience store was also reported stolen out of Lincoln County.
The investigation into Strawder revealed he was also connected to multiple vehicle break-ins and burglaries that occurred overnight Wednesday into Thursday in Lincoln County and eastern El Paso County. Strawder is now facing charges of:
Motor vehicle theft
Second degree burglary
Three counts of criminal trespass (auto)
Theft
Criminal mischief
Possession of a controlled substance
Strawder is currently being held at the El Paso County Jail on a $10,000 bond, and EPSO said additional charges are expected. Detectives are working to find the rightful owners of property stolen by Strawder.
If you have information related to this case, or if you believe you may have been a victim in El Paso County, you are asked to contact EPSO at (719) 390-5555. Victims in Lincoln County should contact the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office at (719) 743-2846.
