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False reporting leads to arrest

Steamboat Springs man claims he was shot at by passing cars

Melinda Dudley

— A Steamboat Springs man was arrested Christmas Day on suspicion of false reporting after he told police he had been the target of drive-by shootings.

Leobardo Magana Navarro, 22, was taken into custody Thursday night after police said he made his second 911 call of the day reporting that he had been shot at by passing cars. He remained in custody Friday at Routt County Jail.

“There were no gunshots, or drive-bys, or anything like that,” Steamboat Springs Police Sgt. Rich Brown said.



The first report came in when Navarro flagged down a car near Seventh Street and Lincoln Avenue at about 3:30 p.m., telling the driver he’d been shot at. Police and an ambulance crew were dispatched to the scene.

When police arrived, Navarro told them he had been walking near his Spruce Street home when two Subarus drove by, and one of the occupants pulled out a gun and started shooting at him, Brown said.



Navarro told police he tried to call 911 but was having trouble with his cell phone and ran downtown to get help instead. Navarro also told police he wanted to go to jail because he’d be safe there and that he wanted to return home to his native Mexico, Brown said.

“Initially, we really weren’t sure what had taken place,” Brown said. “We didn’t know what we were getting into when we were going over there.”

After a brief investigation and speaking with Navarro’s roommate, police determined the alleged drive-by never happened, Brown said.

Navarro made a second 911 call shortly after 10:30 p.m., again claiming he’d been shot at by a passing motorist. This time, the report came from the 1800 block of Central Park Drive.

After being contacted by police at the location, Navarro denied calling 911, Brown said. Police had emergency dispatchers call back the cell phone from which the 911 call was made, and confirmed it was the phone in Navarro’s possession. He then was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of false reporting, Brown said.

“Obviously, when he was calling back a second time, the officers decided if they didn’t take some action at that point, they’d probably get called back again,” Brown said.

Navarro’s bond was set at $750 during his advisement Friday in Routt County Court.


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