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Timothy Rae Lobato

Age : 20

Gender : Male

Race : White

Date : 06/18/2025

Location : South College Avenue and West Trilby Road

City : Fort Collins

County : Larimer

State : Colorado

Agency : Larimer County Sheriff’s Office

Officer(s) :Sergeant Samuel Roth

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Passenger killed the police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

REASON WHY PURSUIT WAS INITIATED:
On 05/23/2025, Larimer County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Samuel Roth attempted to stop a Toyota Camry after identifying the driver, Kenneth Lujan, as a wanted fugitive with an active felony warrant.
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EVENT NARRATIVE:
On 05/23/2025, Sergeant Samuel Roth attempted to stop the Toyota Camry in Fort Collins. The driver continued driving away and Roth escalated a pursuit. During the pursuit, the Camry struck a brick mailbox at 6001 South Ridge Greens Boulevard but continued driving.
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Roth continued pursuing the Camry through south Fort Collins. Investigators later reconstructed and mapped the pursuit route. Roth ultimately performed a tactical vehicle intervention, or PIT/TVI maneuver, against the Camry. The maneuver caused the vehicle to crash, and the Camry caught fire.
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Roth stopped and extinguished the engine fire. Officers broke a window to gain access to the rear seat and removed Timothy Lobato and another passenger. Lujan was found in the driver’s seat. All three people were transported to hospitals. Lujan suffered multiple serious injuries and Lobato suffered extensive, life-threatening injuries.
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Lobato remained alive for nearly four weeks following the police pursuit crash before dying from his injuries on 06/18/2025. His death certificate attributed his death to injuries sustained in the collision. Lobato was 54 years old; an obituary identifies him as Timothy Rae Lobato, born 10/16/1970.
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TOTAL FATALITIES/INJURIES:
1 Fatality, 2 Injuries, both initially described as serious or life-threatening.
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DISPOSITION:
The Eighth Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team investigated Sergeant Samuel Roth’s use of the PIT/TVI maneuver and the circumstances of the fatal crash. The Larimer County District Attorney subsequently determined that Roth’s actions were legally justified and did not criminally charge him for his role in initiating the pursuit and performing the maneuver that preceded the fatal crash.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
The pursuing officer was Larimer County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Samuel Roth. Sergeant Samuel J. Roth was involved in two serious pursuit/use-of-force incidents within 74 days in 2025. On 03/10/2025, Roth joined a pursuit of a mini dirt bike that continued onto the Spring Creek Trail and through Edora Park at approximately 30–40 mph; after the rider crashed and then fired a handgun at Deputy Jason Hart, Roth fired eight rounds, striking the rider. The Eighth Judicial District Attorney ruled Roth’s shooting legally justified and filed no charges.
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On 05/23/2025, Roth pursued Kenneth Lujan’s Toyota Camry in Fort Collins and performed the PIT/TVI maneuver that caused the vehicle to crash into a tree and catch fire. Passenger Timothy Rae Lobato suffered catastrophic injuries and died on 06/18/2025. The Critical Incident Response Team investigated Roth’s conduct, and the District Attorney again found him legally justified and filed no criminal charges.
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Roth was therefore involved in two separate high-risk pursuits in less than three months: one ending in a police shooting and the second ending in a fatal PIT/TVI crash. No separate substantiated disciplinary case or civil judgment against Roth was located in the public records reviewed.
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LITIGATION:
None found.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/crime/2026/02/11/man-sentenced-fort-collins-police-chase-passenger-killed/
https://www.reporterherald.com/2026/02/11/fort-collins-police-chase-sentence-lujan/
https://kdvr.com/news/local/driver-sentenced-in-chase-crash-that-killed-passenger/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/driver-sentenced-chase-crash-killed-223011245.html