On September 26, 2015 at approximately 4:07 pm Park County Sheriff’s Deputies were dispatched to 350 Willow Lane, near the Town of Alma, on the report that a man had been shot. The man reported that his neighbor who was wearing camouflage clothing had shot him and ran into a wooded area in the direction of his home. Senior Sergeant Tonjes requested that responding officers remove the victim and transport him to medical personnel who were staged near-by. Officers from Alma and Fairplay responded to this request while deputies mounted a search for the shooter. The Sheriff’s Office had Park County Communications do a reverse notification in the area to warn residents to stay in their homes.
Upon arriving on scene Undersheriff Gore established a perimeter around the home of the suspected shooter, Undersheriff Gore and Senior Sergeant Tonjes were attempting to make contact with the suspect, when Alma Police Officer Robinson reported that he seen the suspect who was wearing camouflage clothing run across the County Road 19 near the intersection of US Highway 9.
Deputies quickly responded to this area to search for the suspect. A few minutes after arriving Sheriff Wegener shouted that he had located the suspect who was alive, but unresponsive due to what is thought to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The suspect was airlifted by flight for life to a metro area hospital. Park County Sheriff’s Detectives are still working on this case.
The victim who was shot is identified as Philip Houghton, 61, of Alma. He is reported to be in critical but stable condition.
The alleged shooter, died last night from the self-inflicted gunshot wound. His name is being withheld pending notification of family.
Sheriff Wegener would like to thank Park County Communications, Fairplay Police Department, Alma Police Department, Northwest Fire Protection District and South Park Ambulance for their assistance.
We believe this situation was the result of an ongoing dispute between neighbors.