Matthew Dolloff to be charged with 2nd degree murder in shooting death of 'Patriot Rally' attendee in Denver



The man who allegedly shot and killed a "Patriot Rally" attendee in Denver will be charged with second-degree murder, according to Denver District Attorney Beth McCann.

Matthew Dolloff was working as a private security guard for a local news station covering the rally when he got into a physical altercation with 49-year-old Lee Keltner, a rally demonstrator, according to the arrest affidavit.

Prosecutors say that an argument between Keltner, Dolloff and a 9News producer escalated until Keltner smacked Dolloff in the head. Dolloff then shot Keltner in the chest after he was hit with pepper spray.

McCann said that she would file the charge on Monday.

The altercation was caught on video and documented by photographers who were there to cover the rallies.

Dolloff faces up to 48 years in prison if he is convicted of the charge.

Early reports after the shooting claimed that Dolloff was an Antifa member, but the police contradicted that claim in a statement later released.

"Further investigation has determined the suspect is a private security guard with no affiliation with Antifa. Additional information will be released as it becomes available," read the statement.

Dolloff claims self defense

An attorney for Dolloff said a statement released to the media that he was acting in self-defense.

"Matt was acting in self-defense. Matt put his life and now his liberty in between the now-deceased and the 9News employee." said attorney Doug Richards. "This was not a political assignment for Matt. This was simply Matt protecting your employee."

The Denver City Attorney's Office also said that there could be civil or criminal charges filed against Dolloff, his direct employer Pinkerton, and 9News, due to the fact that Dolloff was allegedly acting as a security guard without proper licensure.

The family of Keltner said they were considering filing a lawsuit over the lethal incident. They said that he wasn't part of any group protesting, but that he was just at the demonstration to show support for the police.

Here's a local news report about the tragic incident:

Denver shooting: Victim identified; Dolloff family attorney calls incident self-defensewww.youtube.com

Shooting victim and private security guard suspect from Denver protests identified, family reacts



There was a man shot and killed amidst protests by two rival groups in Denver on Saturday.

The shooter, a private security guard working for a local TV station, was arrested without bond and was being held for suspicion of first-degree murder. Matthew Robert Dolloff, 30, is a Pinkerton private security guard who was hired by KUSA-TV to accompany their reporters while covering protests and riots in Denver.

Denver Police released a statement about Dolloff on Saturday night, "Further investigation has determined the suspect is a private security guard with no affiliation with Antifa. Additional information will be released as it becomes available."

The decision on any charges against Dolloff will be up to the Denver District Attorney's Office, police said. A spokesperson for District Attorney Beth McCann said Sunday that the arrest affidavit in the case remained sealed.

The Denver Post is reporting that the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses have no record of Dolloff having a license to work as a private security guard in the city, according to spokesperson Eric Escudero.

"We do not currently have an active license and have never had an active license for anybody with that name," Escudero said. "If he was operating as a security guard, he was in violation of the law."

UPDATE: Matthew Dolloff (DOB 03-07-1990) is being held for Investigation of First Degree Murder in connection w/the… https://t.co/i9ZQXVXvRh
— Denver Police Dept. (@Denver Police Dept.)1602435805.0

There was a "Patriot Muster" rally organized by John "Tig" Tiegen held at Denver's Civic Center Park. Upon learning about the "Patriot Muster, the Denver Communists organization set up a counter-protest called the "BLM-Antifa Soup Drive."

Lee Keltner, a 49-year-old U.S. Navy veteran, was in the area of the protests.

"He wasn't a part of any group," said the shooting victim's son, Johnathon Keltner. "He was there to rally for the police department and he'd been down there before rallying for the police department."

There was an incident where Kelter got into a verbal altercation with a man wearing a "Black Guns Matter" shirt at around 3:30 p.m. local time. Keltner, who has a can of Mace in his hand, steps away from the argument and goes out of the view of the camera.

Then a gunshot rings out and you see Keltner fall to the ground.

Photos show that Keltner and Dolloff got into a physical altercation before the Mace was sprayed and prior to the gun being fired.

Dualing rallies in Denver leaves one dead Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images


Dueling rallies in Denver leave one dead Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images

Police rushed to the crime scene with guns drawn and Dolloff surrendered.

Shooting in Denver today. (10/10/2020) https://t.co/nq3wuZfcEB
— Austin Frisch (@Austin Frisch)1602368474.0

Two guns and a can of Mace were found at the scene, according to Joe Montoya, the division chief of investigation at the Denver Police Department.

Keltner was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Lee Keltner operated a hat-making business in the Denver area.

A photo of Lee Keltner, the conservative Denver man who was shot in the face & killed by suspected @9NEWS unlicense… https://t.co/5K1LoFIETF
— Andy Ngô (@Andy Ngô)1602456799.0

"My son Lee was at the patriot rally today in Denver," Keltner's mother, Carole, wrote on the Northeast Arkansas Tea Party Facebook group, according to Fox News. "He was murdered because he backed the police."

Lee Keltner's sister told The New York Post that his son is not handling the death well.

"He was there," said Suzan Keltner. When she was asked if her nephew was doing okay, she said, "No, no he's not."

"He was my brother, my only sibling," she said. "He also served our country."

"There's going to be a lawsuit," Suzan Keltner added. "So, I don't know how much we can let out."

John "Tig" Tiegen, one of the organizers of the Patriot Rally event, offered his condolences to the family of the victim.

"I'm deeply saddened to learn of the tragic death of a fellow American patriot after a rally in Denver on Saturday," Tiegen wrote. "Regardless of the circumstances, I want to send my deepest condolences to the family of the victim."

"It's tragic that Americans find themselves in danger just by coming together and showing support for their country," he added. "The fact that simple things like wearing patriotic attire now makes you a target in an American city should be a concern for every freedom-loving person. If Americans reach the point that they're afraid to publicly show support for their country, the radical Marxists have won."

1 dead, 2 in custody after fatal shooting in Denver near 'Patriot Rally' and BLM-Antifa counter-protest



Two suspects were taken into custody by police on Saturday afternoon after a person was shot and killed in downtown Denver.

An event dubbed the "Patriot Muster" rally organized by John "Tig" Tiegen was held at 2 p.m. at Denver's Civic Center Park. "It's time we let these communist socialists know we have had enough," a description of the event read. "Fight back, push back. Time to take our country back!"

Once the Denver Communists organization caught wind of the rally, they scheduled a counter-protest called the "BLM-Antifa Soup Drive."

"We scheduled our action after learning that the militia-fascists had called a 'patriot muster' against the Black Lives Matter movement, anti-fascists and Marxists," a spokesperson for Denver Communists said. "That's us — guilty as charged and happy to oblige with our presence."

"The plan is to set up our tables and tents in Civic Center Park, as near as we can be to the fascists," Denver Communists said. "We'll have soup for our family, music, speakers, communist books, and plenty of angry anti-fascist chants."

KUSA reporter Marc Sallinger was covering the rally and the counter-protest.

"Hello from downtown Denver where far-right militia groups are holding a rally," Sallinger wrote on Twitter. "Far-left Black Lives Matter Antifa groups are holding a counter protest nearby."

Police separated the two opposing groups with fences.

The far-right militia groups and far-left BLM/Antifa groups have been active on social media recently telling peopl… https://t.co/PBaniJ1inp
— Marc Sallinger (@Marc Sallinger)1602359128.0


A couple hundred feet away a group with an “Antifacist Action” flag as well as a “Denver Communists” flag is at a s… https://t.co/E1dVeVjYzF
— Marc Sallinger (@Marc Sallinger)1602361079.0


A line of police officers kneel down to put on gas masks, perhaps foreshadowing what’s to come. The officers are li… https://t.co/JyIUDTrpo8
— Marc Sallinger (@Marc Sallinger)1602363252.0

At 5:48 p.m. EST, Denver Police's official Twitter account wrote: "Officers are investigating a shooting that occurred in the Courtyard by the Art Museum." The police said the shooting victim was transported to the hospital.

The Denver Police shared updates that two suspects were in custody, and that the shooting was "now being investigated as a Homicide."

"A man participating in what was billed as a 'Patriot Rally' that also included a presence of self-described BLM-Antifa protesters, sprayed mace at another man and that man shot him with a handgun," The Denver Post reported.

Video from the area shows an orange cloud of smoke or vapor followed by the sound of a gunshot. Footage shows Denver Police rush to the scene with guns drawn, then order two men to the ground, including a man dressed in all black with a handgun. Meanwhile, the victim lay motionless on the ground.

(CAUTION: Graphic video)

Shooting in Denver today. (10/10/2020) https://t.co/nq3wuZfcEB
— Austin Frisch (@Austin Frisch)1602368474.0


Here’s the scene outside the Denver library as police investigate a shooting following the rally #9News https://t.co/F7S0RVMQCv
— Marc Sallinger (@Marc Sallinger)1602366937.0


Police Take 2 In Custody After Shooting During Dueling Protests https://t.co/14ofVGWit7 https://t.co/a5iOteIcko
— CBSDenver (@CBSDenver)1602367413.0


A man dressed in black appears to be walking away from the crime scene and yelling, "One less white f****** supremacist, right in the f****** dome!"

Another video features a person screaming, "Die fascist scum!"

Earlier in the day, rival protesters got in each others face. There were also agitators dressed in all black burning a thin blue line flag in front of Denver Police.

At one point, men dressed in all black with umbrellas scream at police for speaking to an older woman. The woman instructs everyone to "relax."

More Antifa/BLM celebrating the killing of a Trump Supporter.""white supremacist""right in the fucking dome" https://t.co/vI4MZCbIcU
— Austin Frisch (@Austin Frisch)1602369960.0


After the Denver shooting, unfazed, BLM/Antifa yell "Die Fascist Scum" https://t.co/eqKUf8ecZp
— Austin Frisch (@Austin Frisch)1602369855.0


Denver earlier https://t.co/CA2pS9tUi3
— Kitty Shackleford (@Kitty Shackleford)1602370218.0


Antifa militants are now harassing police in Denver who are trying to control the situation where a man was just sh… https://t.co/eANyfNwY0a
— Ian Miles Cheong (@Ian Miles Cheong)1602368114.0