Employee arrested after shooting woman during protest that blocked Aurora ICE facility access

Brandon Booth, 42, an employee of GEO Group, was arrested Thursday evening by Aurora police after he fired a single shot from his personally owned pistol at two female protesters near the Aurora ICE Processing Center. Police said Booth was waiting in his car on a nearby street with other workers when a demonstration blocked access to the facility.

Two female protesters confronted the employees verbally, took pictures of their cars, and walked away.

Booth then fired once toward the women, striking one in the lower body, before driving off. Officers arrested him two blocks from the scene. The Aurora ICE Processing Facility is Colorado’s only operating ICE detention center and holds up to 1,500 people.

The New York Post reported that Booth was charged with assault and attempted second-degree murder. A GEO Group spokesperson said the company was aware that an off-duty employee was involved in a shooting incident. The company placed the individual on unpaid administrative leave and stated it will fully cooperate with law enforcement.

Aurora Chief of Police Todd Chamberlain said the department will investigate the incident with commitment to transparency and integrity. He added that the department remains committed to an ethical, thorough, objective, and comprehensive review and that violence of any kind will not be tolerated in Aurora.