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Last week, Jeremy Rocha was found guilty of first-degree murder and multiple counts of attempted murder for the shooting that killed firefighter John Jaros.
ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. — A man convicted last week for the fatal shooting of a firefighter who was killed while driving with his family on Interstate 70 will be sentenced Thursday morning.
John Jaros, a Glen Haven volunteer firefighter, was shot and killed while driving with his wife and children on Interstate 70 near Tower Road on June 18, 2022.
On Friday, a jury convicted Jeremy Rocha, now 22, on one count of second-degree murder, a conviction of a lesser charge of first-degree murder after deliberation. The jury also convicted him on one count of first-degree murder – extreme indifference and four counts of attempted murder related to family members who were in the truck with Jaros.
The first-degree murder conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
Rocha was arrested and charged in Jaros’ killing five days after the shooting.
According to an arrest affidavit, Jaros’ wife told investigators there were two vehicles slowing traffic down purposefully to allow two other vehicles to race.
Jaros passed the two slowed-down vehicles on the left shoulder of the interstate. According to Jaros’ wife, he might have “brake-checked” the first two cars when he re-entered the driving lane.
Jaros’ wife said she heard at least four gunshots and saw her husband slump over, the affidavit says.
At his his trial, Rocha claimed self-defense and said that Jaros sped up to catch up with them as they raced and then rammed one of the other vehicles.
“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 mph 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.”
He also claimed that at one point Jaros’ truck was parallel to his vehicle and that he saw Jaros point a gun at him, which prompted him to fire his weapon.
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