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Jeremy Rocha, 22, said John Jaros pulled up beside him holding a gun while he was street racing with friends on Interstate 70.
ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. — On Thursday, 22-year-old Jeremy Rocha took the stand four days after his trial began in the death of John Jaros.
Rocha is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, four counts of criminal attempted first-degree murder and a crime of violence. Jaros, a Glen Haven volunteer firefighter, was shot and killed while driving with his wife and children on Interstate 70 near Tower Road in June 2022. They had planned to go camping for Father’s Day weekend.
That same day in June, Rocha had purchased a white Mustang. He met up with friends at a Maverik gas station, a known spot for car enthusiasts. Rocha then went on I-70 with three other drivers. Two cars were taking up two lanes in order to slow down traffic and create enough space on the interstate to race.
In court, Rocha said he was racing against a driver in a black Chevrolet Camaro and, shortly after they had started, a white truck — driven by Jaros — had gone around the cars that were slowing down traffic.
“We’re driving for a couple seconds now. We are going about 80 miles an hour,” Rocha said on the stand. “When I look in my rearview mirror, and I see this white truck coming up behind us at a high rate of speed.”
Rocha said that Jaros had sped up enough to catch up with the Camaro and then began driving in the left shoulder lane. Rocha then said Jaros “rammed” into the Camaro.
“I see this Camaro kind of lose control. As he is losing control, this white truck is starting to chase me down. I am going about 90 miles per hour at this point, and it’s coming up behind me fairly quick,” Rocha said. “And I just seen him ram into this black Camaro, so at this point, I’m scared. I’m not sure what is going to happen next.”
Rocha said that once Jaros caught up to him in the white truck, the two cars were parallel. He said Jaros had his left hand on the steering wheel and a gun in his right hand, leaning over the passenger side.
That’s when Rocha pulled his gun and fired nine times at Jaros’ truck.
The prosecution says that in messages with friends after the shooting, Rocha didn’t show remorse and told a friend he had “dumped his clip,” but never shared that he acted in self-defense until a jail call with his mother.
In court, the prosecution asked Rocha, “So the fact that Jonathon Jaros was shot and killed in I-70 was entirely his fault?”
“Correct,” Rocha replied.
Rocha maintains that he did not see Jaros’ wife in the passenger seat and did not know there were children in the car.
According to an arrest affidavit, a witness said he believed the truck hit the Camaro and kept going, and that the white Mustang then followed the truck.
Closing arguments begin Friday at 9 a.m. After that, a jury will decide if the case is one of murder or self-defense.
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