Gilpin County Residents Unnerved By Anonymous Arson Threat

A warning written in chalk on a state highway last week threatened Gilpin County residents with intentionally set fires. A photo of the message appeared in a resident’s Facebook page July 25th. That resident’s post said the message — “We started the fires! Be ready” — was left the night before on State Highway 46 near the Gilpin County Fairgrounds. It references two previous fires that occurred at the fairgrounds in early July. Together, the incidents have sent unnerved residents onto social media to express their concerns. “Keep all your senses alert. These people need to be caught and put in jail for a long time,” wrote one person in the Facebook post’s comments section. The nefarious road message is more unnerving, Hartman admitted. But he asked residents to stay calm. “God Bless the First Amendment and everything,” he said, “but there are a lot of factors involved. It’s all people speculating and very little data backing up what they’re saying.” Investigators are trying to figure out who wrote the message but have little to go on aside from the chalk markings...MORE