On a summer afternoon in Arvada, Colorado, a deeply respected police officer's life was tragically cut short in a calculated act of violence. Gordon D. Beesley, a 51-year-old male and a 19-year veteran of the Arvada Police Department, was killed on June 21, 2021. He was responding to a call about a suspicious incident in Olde Town Arvada when he was ambushed and fatally shot. Beesley, who was the school resource officer at Oberon Middle School, was working on patrol for the summer.
He had no opportunity to defend himself as the gunman targeted him specifically because he was wearing a police uniform.
The man responsible for Beesley's death was identified as 59-year-old Ronald Troyke. Motivated by a deep-seated hatred for law enforcement, Troyke had penned a note detailing his intent to kill as many Arvada police officers as possible. On that day, Troyke spotted Officer Beesley, retrieved a shotgun from his vehicle, and approached him from behind before opening fire. After shooting Beesley, Troyke fired shots at police cars and then returned to his truck to get an AR-15.
The violent episode did not end with Officer Beesley's death. A bystander, 40-year-old John Hurley, witnessed the events and took heroic action. Hurley drew his own handgun and shot Troyke, likely preventing further loss of life. In a tragic turn of events, a responding Arvada police officer, arriving at the chaotic scene, saw Hurley holding the suspect's rifle and fatally shot him. Troyke, the initial shooter, was killed during the exchange of gunfire. No arrests were made as the suspect was killed at the scene. The officer who shot Hurley was later cleared of any criminal charges.
