Carlos Alberto Trejo (CSPD)
A 36-year-old man from Colorado Springs was arrested last for allegedly shooting and killing his roommate with a compound bow and arrow, then breaking into the local police station in an attempt to turn himself in. Carlos Alberto Trejo was taken into custody and charged with one count of second-degree murder in the death 37-year-old Martin Rodarte, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
According to a sworn probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, a corporal with the Colorado Springs Police Department at approximately 1:23 a.m. on Dec. 18 detained Trejo after allegedly catching him trying to entering the secure back parking lot of the station and breaking a glass window.
Trejo allegedly scaled the back gate, which was marked, “Authorized Personnel Only,” then tried to get into the locked back door of the substation. When he failed to get in, Trejo allegedly pulled the fire alarm before using an ice scraper to smash the window near the back door of the station.
When the corporal confronted Trejo in the act and asked him what he was doing, Trejo allegedly confessed to killing Rodarte and said he was “trying to turn himself in.”
“I just woke up and shot my friend in the chest,” he allegedly said, providing an address in the 1300 block of Kelly Johnson Boulevard. “I shot him with an arrow,” he allegedly added, identifying the victim as “Martin.”
However, the officer — Corporal A. Grimes — initially did not believe Trejo had actually shot anybody due to an encounter the officer had with Trejo less than two days prior.
“Corporal Grimes told Your Affiant he had dealt with Mr. Trejo on 12/16/2022, and Mr. Trejo admitted to using acid and cocaine at that time, and Corporal Grimes believed Mir. Trejo was hallucinating and emotionally distraught during his contact with Mr. Trejo on 12/16/2022,” the affidavit states. “Corporal Grimes told Your Affiant that he did not believe Mr. Trejo had actually shot anyone with an arrow this morning, and believed Mr. Trejo was still hallucinating and/or under the influence of narcotics.”
According to the affidavit, Trejo on Dec. 16 called CSPD at approximately 7 p.m. and said “there was a situation in the apartment which he had to get away from,” but refused to provide the operator with any additional information. When officers tried to call him back they said he was “very uncooperative.”
Several hours later, at approximately 11 p.m., officers responded to Guthrie’s Bar and Grill, located only blocks from Trejo’s home, regarding a welfare check on a customer who was “on acid, hallucinating, and making other customers uncomfortable.” Upon arriving, Trejo allegedly told police that he was on acid and was transported to the hospital for a medical evaluation “for a possible acid overdose.”
After Trejo was caught allegedly breaking into the police station, officers responded to the Kelly Johnson Boulevard address where they found the front door unlocked. When they went inside, they located the body of an adult male on the bedroom floor of the apartment with “a compound archery bow” located next to the body.
Investigators spoke to Trejo’s girlfriend, who allegedly told them she’d moved out of the Kelly Johnson Boulevard home a few weeks ago after “a disturbance” between her and Trejo. Rodarte, who she identified as Trejo’s cousin, moved in around the same time, she allegedly said.
Trejo is currently being held in the El Paso County Jail on $500,000 bond, jail records show He is currently scheduled to appear in court for his preliminary hearing on Jan. 25.
[image via CSPD]
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