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Police: Suspected Gunman Threatened Wife's Family Before Shooting

DENVER (CBS4)- Police documents show the suspected gunman who allegedly shot his wife and killed a neighbor on Friday had threatened his wife's family before.

Daniel Abeyta has not been formally charged with a crime. He continues to recover in the hospital after he was shot by police. The Denver DA's office said any charges will depend on Abeyta's recovery.

The incident started at 10:40 a.m. in the Harvey Park neighborhood in the 2200 block of South Irving on Friday on reports of a shooting and of a man, Abeyta, 31, walking around the neighborhood with guns.

When officers arrived Abeyta suddenly shot at a propane tank that had gunpowder on top. Denver police's bomb squad searched homes in the area for more devices after the shooting.

Police said those tanks were set up by Abeyta after he shot his wife and killed his neighbor.

During a search of the neighborhood, police found a woman dead in a nearby home.

Officers also said Abeyta allegedly shot another woman, who is reportedly his wife, in a different home and that she was injured in the leg.

According to court documents Abeyta's wife called 911 and "reported that she had just been shot by her husband who then fled out the back door of the house and he was armed with a shotgun."

Police are still searching for a motive in the shootings.

Court documents state that police collected a lot of evidence including a rifle with a scope, a shotgun on the trunk of a yellow Maserati parked in the driveway and a black semi-automatic gun in the front yard.

Documents also state that during an interview with his wife's mother she revealed that "Abeyta has threatened her family in the past with homemade bombs."

bomb squad
An image from the scene during the rampage (credit: CBS)

Neighbors said Abeyta is a military veteran and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and is involved in a difficult marriage.

He has an arrest record that includes felony menacing with a deadly weapon and violating a restraining order.

Abeyta was an employee with the City of Denver's Solid Waste Management department for the past 13 years. He left the job in June. It is unclear why.

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