In the early morning hours of a Thursday in Pueblo, Colorado, a violent encounter cut short the life of 23-year-old Quincey Coates. The incident unfolded at Sharky's Bar, where a man, his face obscured by a blue mask and a black hoodie, entered and opened fire. Coates was shot numerous times in what police believe may have been a targeted act of revenge.
The chaos also engulfed a pregnant woman, 28-year-old Nicole Vallejos, who was with Coates and was also struck by the gunfire.
First responders rushed to the scene, and Vallejos was transported to a hospital in Colorado Springs. There, she delivered her baby, but the infant tragically lived for only a short time before passing away. With the death of both Coates and the newborn, the investigation was escalated to a double homicide. Authorities noted that Coates and Vallejos were believed to have been in a relationship.
The investigation quickly zeroed in on a suspect with a history of violent altercations with Coates. When questioned by police, the wounded Vallejos immediately named 37-year-old Damen Blake as someone who would want to harm Coates. The history between the two men included a 2012 incident where Coates was a suspect in menacing Blake with a deadly weapon. More recently, in May of 2014, Blake himself had been shot multiple times in his car, and while Coates was never arrested, the vehicle description was similar to one he drove.
Surveillance footage from Sharky's Bar captured the chilling moments leading up to the shooting, showing the masked gunman's deliberate entrance. This evidence, combined with witness statements and Facebook photos, led police to identify Blake as the shooter. He was arrested at a residence in Pueblo on a Friday evening. A friend of Blake's described him as a 'good person' who had been struggling and going through an 'unpeaceful' time since he had been shot, suggesting he may have wanted to handle the situation on his own. Following his arrest, Damen Blake faced two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Quincey Coates and the unborn child.
