On a winter night in Arvada, Colorado, a dispute over a game of pool escalated into a violent series of events that culminated in the death of 23-year-old Igor Skorev. The night of January 4, 2014, began with an argument at the Hoffbrau Grill in Westminster involving Skorev and his companion, Maksim Khamov, who was also 23 years old. Following the altercation, Skorev and Khamov left in a silver Audi and were pursued by four individuals from the bar in a red Hyundai.
The situation quickly
intensified as Skorev, a White / Caucasian male, leaned out of the passenger window of the Audi and fired a black semi-automatic handgun at the pursuing vehicle, striking its left rear tire. The occupants of the Hyundai reported the shooting to the Arvada Police Department, initiating a police response. When officers located the silver Audi, the driver, Khamov, accelerated towards an officer, prompting two officers to open fire on the vehicle. A high-speed chase ensued, with the Audi reaching speeds of 100 mph before officers decided to terminate the pursuit for safety reasons.
A short time later, officers from the Arvada and Westminster police departments discovered the silver Audi parked in an apartment complex lot. Inside the vehicle, they found Maksim Khamov in the driver's seat with minor injuries that were not from gunshots. Igor Skorev was in the front passenger seat, deceased from multiple gunshot wounds. An autopsy later revealed he sustained a gunshot wound under his left arm that entered his chest, a wound to his left knee, and a fatal gunshot wound to the head.
Maksim Khamov was taken into custody at the scene. He was later found guilty on fourteen counts, including five counts of attempted extreme indifference murder for firing at the four people in the other car and for attempting to run over an Arvada police officer. For his role in the events of that night, Khamov was sentenced to 72 years in prison. The officers involved in the shooting were placed on paid leave during the investigation, and the district attorney's office ultimately determined that their actions were justified and did not support the filing of any criminal charges against them.
