In the spring of 2019, Joseph McDaniels, a 48-year-old Caucasian male, was preparing for a new chapter in his life with his family in Denver, Colorado. He, his wife Althea, and their children were in the process of moving to Mississippi, having recently sold their home. On the evening of May 23rd, as they were packing their belongings, a familiar face would bring a tragic and violent end to their plans.
That evening, Bustaman Kartabrata, the 59-year-old husband of Joseph's mother,
arrived at the McDaniels' home on South Golden Way. After a brief conversation in the living room, Kartabrata and his wife went outside to their car. A short time later, Kartabrata returned to the house alone, claiming his wife had left her purse inside. Once he was let in, he produced a gun and began shooting. Joseph McDaniels was the first to be struck by the gunfire.
The horrific events unfolded in front of the McDaniels' nine-year-old son, who witnessed his father being shot, followed by his mother, Althea. Kartabrata then pursued their 11-year-old daughter, Christine, upstairs, where he fatally shot her as well. Amid the chaos, the young boy managed to escape through a kitchen door and ran to a nearby apartment to get help and have someone call 911. His maternal grandmother, who also lived in the home, saved herself by jumping from a second-story window.
The young boy was able to identify his paternal grandmother's husband, Bustaman Kartabrata, as the gunman. Kartabrata was located and arrested in northeast Denver shortly after the incident. He was subsequently charged with three counts of first-degree murder and felony menacing. In April 2022, a Denver jury found Kartabrata guilty on all counts, and he was later sentenced for the murders of Joseph, Althea, and Christine McDaniels. While the specific motive for the killings was not publicly released, the senseless act of violence irrevocably shattered a family and a community.
