CENTENNIAL — Aurora police officer Matthew Neely, 54, was indicted Monday on second-degree murder and manslaughter charges in the Aug. 30, 2025 shooting death of Rajon Belt-Stubblefield, 37, during a traffic stop. Court records show Neely shot Belt-Stubblefield three times after a physical altercation following a crash, stating he feared losing a fistfight. Investigators found Neely did not warn Belt-Stubblefield he would shoot and deliberately withheld an arrest warning to maintain "an element of surprise," according to the indictment.
Belt-Stubblefield had thrown a gun into the grass before the confrontation escalated. The indictment indicates Belt-Stubblefield did not threaten the officer or attempt to retrieve the weapon, which remained in the grass throughout the encounter. Neely was armed but spent seven seconds unable to holster his handgun to deploy a less-lethal weapon.
Quwwaa is your AI news butler — a personalized brief and assistant for the stories you care about.
See more on Quwwaa — create a free account