Brother of man found dead at Colorado theme park speaks

Publish date: 2024-05-06

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The heavily armed man who killed himself rather than potentially carry out a mass shooting at a Colorado amusement park was a reclusive gamer obsessed with “Call of Duty” but not “dangerous,” according to his older brother.

David Barajas Medina, 27, told NBC News that he did not believe his 20-year-old brother, David Barajas Medina, meant to harm anyone.

Diego has been identified by the authorities as the man whose body was found in a women’s bathroom at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park Saturday next to a cryptic message scrawled on the wall that read: “I am not a killer, I just wanted to get into the caves.”

He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, Garfield County Coroner Robert Glassmire said.

“I didn’t think he was a dangerous person,” David said. “I’m not sure what he was setting out to do.”

The two brothers and their mother all shared a two-bedroom apartment in Carbondale, Colorado, where the younger Barajas Medina would stay up every night playing video games, his brother said.

Diego Barajas Medina, 20, may have been planning to carry out a mass shooting in Colorado before deciding to take his own life. KETV

“He wouldn’t talk to any of us,” David said of his sibling, whom he described as a “quiet person.”

The 20-year-old may have been depressed, having lost his job at a Family Dollar store a year ago and struggling financially.

Diego was reselling items on Amazon to make ends meet but was behind on his share of the rent, said his brother. 

He spent every night playing “Call of Duty” and went to bed at 6 a.m.

Barajs Medina’s body was found in a women’s bathroom at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park Saturday. KUSA

But despite his unconventional lifestyle, Diego “seemed normal,” according to David.

Diego Barajas Medina apparently entered the amusement park while it was closed, armed with an AR-style rifle, a semi-automatic handgun and explosives — both real and fake– and was wearing body armor and dark-colored tactical clothing typically worn by SWAT officers.

His brother said that Diego “always wanted to be a police officer” and had multiple guns and a tactical vest.

Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario said Monday that there were no prior red flags suggesting that Diego was planning an attack.

Officials said a heavily armed Barajas Medina dressed in tactical clothes had entered the park before it opened to the public. AP

But Vallario pointed out at that “given the preparation, given the amount of weapons and ordinance he had it almost seemed very highly likely he intended to use those against the community. He chose not to.”

The weapons found on Barajas Medina were ghost guns, which do not have serial numbers and cannot be traced.

His clothing had patches and emblems similar to those worn by law enforcement officers.

Multiple improvised explosive devices were found in the vehicle used by Diego, police said.

Some of the IEDs turned out to be fake — including several that were made to look like hand grenades.

A search of Diego’s room, which he shared with his older brother, found nothing to indicate explosives or bomb-making, and he had no known criminal history or prior encounters with police, the sheriff said.

A cryptic message that read in part, “I am not a killer,” was found written on a bathroom wall next to Barajas Medina’s body. KDVR

David said investigators seized Medina’s cell phone, which he had left at home, as well as a box under his bed that may have been used to store his cache of weapons.

The FBI will help comb through Medina’s phone records and social media posts as part of the investigation.

With Post wires

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