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Aurora police charge man with hiding gun from Sept. 10 shooting

Aurora police have charged a third man in connection with a Sept. 10 drive-by shooting that injured two 18-year-old Aurora men on the 100 block of North Loucks Street.

Javier Melendez, 19, of the 700 block of Hankes Avenue, was charged with unlawful use of a weapon, accused of concealing the sawed-off shotgun used in the shooting that occurred about 9 p.m.

The two 17-year-olds are accused of driving by a group of men who were standing in front of a Loucks Street home. One of them is accused of firing a shotgun, the spray from which struck one of the 18-year-old victims in the face.

After driving a short distance down the street, the two turned around, approached the 18-year-olds again and fired a second time, hitting the other one in the back, police said.

Richard M. Bennett, 17, of the 1700 block of Hazelnut Lane, was accused of being the triggerman and charged as an adult with attempted murder, which carries a maximum of 30 years in prison, according to records. Information about the other juvenile arrested was not available.

None of the injuries that night were life-threatening. One of the victims was taken to an Aurora Hospital by paramedics, while the other refused medical attention.

Police said that after the shooting, the two 17-year-olds stopped by Melendez's house where Melendez took the shotgun from them and hid it in a closet.

Two 17-year-olds charged with attempted murder in Aurora shooting

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