Mineral County deputy kills suspect at fairgrounds

SUPERIOR — The carnival atmosphere of the 2015 Mineral County Fair and Rodeo was shattered by the sounds of gunfire Friday night after a Mineral County sheriff’s deputy opened fire and killed a suspect directly across the street from the rodeo arena.

Details and the circumstances of the shooting were being closesly guarded by local authroities. All that is known is that sometime around 9 p.m. Friday, shots were fired at a vehicle by a Mineral County deputy. The shots were heard by some members of the public at the rodeo and on the west end of the fairgrounds.

 A white pickup truck could be seen in an alley on Pennsylvania Avenue between Fifth Avenue East and Sixth Avenue East which appeared to have crashed into a trailer and a fence post. Behind yellow police tape, an orange towel could be seen draped over the driver’s side of the vehicle obscuring the body of the suspect from public view.

Sheriff’s office vehicles closed the section of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the fairgrounds as deputies and an investigator examined and took pictures of the scene. The body and car remained in place until late afternoon Saturday.