Innocent Homeowner's Colorado House Destroyed in Police Standoff

Following a standoff between police and an armed suspect, a Greenwood Village home was left with blown out windows, exposed frames, and evidence of destruction which The Denver Post referred to as reminiscent of a “battle zone.”

The suspect identified by police as Robert Jonathon Seacat, 33, was safely removed from the house on 4219 S. Alton St. on Thursday morning after having entered it to hide following a shoplifting, according to police.

Now, home owner Leo Lech has to pick up the pieces.

"My house has been destroyed by a paramilitary unit," Lech said. "We'll have to basically doze it down to the foundation."

The ordeal began on Wednesday when Aurora Police officers responded to a call about a shoplifting at a local Wal-Mart on E. Hampden Ave.

Police said the suspect fled the scene in a vehicle and drove to a light-rail station, where he abandoned the vehicle and escaped on foot. The suspect then made his way into Lech's home.

Officers from the Greenwood Village Police Department, the Aurora Police Department and the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Department surrounded the home. Power and water were cut off from Lech's house and the surrounding properties to coax the suspect out.

Police said officers from the Greenwood Village Dept. entered the home after several hours and were shot at.

At about 8:50 am Thursday, "officers and deputies entered the home again and safely removed the suspect," Greenwood Village police said in a media release.

During the standoff, a 9-year-old boy escaped the house unharmed. Lech's 25-year-old son who was living in the home and renting from his father arrived on Wednesday after police had cordoned off the property. He called his father saying he could not get in.

Lech said his son called him back on Thursday to say, 'The house is totaled!'

As of Friday, The Greenwood Village Police Dept. had not responded to The Denver Post's request for comment nor offered an explanation for the amount of force used.

Lech said Police Chief John Jackson told him: "'Well, we did what we had to do.' "

Now, Lech and the village are each discussing the incident with their insurers.

"I can not speculate to terms of responsibility," said Matt Cohrs, assistant to the city manager. "There is a process that needs to be followed in what or may not happen."

"There was one gunman with a handgun and they chose to turn this house into something that resembles Osama Bin Laden's compound," Lech later told Channel 7 News.