The Brighton Police Department is investigating a homicide that occurred on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at a hotel in the 15100 block of Brighton Road. At 12:06 p.m., dispatch received a call with a report of a victim with a gunshot wound in a hotel room. The 28-year-old female victim was pronounced deceased on scene.

Witnesses at the hotel reported seeing a hispanic male flee in a black lifted pickup truck with Texas license plates. A notification was pushed out to neighboring jurisdictions to be on the lookout for a vehicle matching this description. Shortly following this, Brighton Police Officers conducted a high-risk traffic stop on 27th Avenue and Bromley Lane with a black pickup truck that matched the description. This individual turned out to not be involved with the shooting.

The lookout notification was quickly expanded. Around 3:15 p.m. the person of interest, 31-year-old Ricardo Perales Cordero, was contacted and taken into custody by the Trinidad Police Department. The Brighton Police Department determined that there was probable cause to make an arrest. Cordero was transported back to Brighton and booked into Adams County jail on charges of 1st degree murder, domestic violence and tampering with evidence.

The case will be filed with the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office where the final decision of formal charges will be determined. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to please contact our Investigations Division at (303) 655-3703. 

If you or someone you know are experiencing domestic violence, resources are available. For information to help identify abuse, visit thehotline.org/identify-abuse. For legal assistance and protection order information, visit psghelps.org. To reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline, call 1-800-799-7233 or text START to 88788.