Colorado Wife Finds Husband Dead After Police Fail To Respond To Hostage Situation

A wife in Colorado is looking for answers after her husband was slain shortly after she called the police to report that he was being held hostage.

The tragic situation occurred on Friday, June 2, when Talija Campbell phoned 911 to report that her husband, Qualin Campbell, was being held against his will. She told police that she received a text message from Qualin that read “911” and “Send Please,” along with his location. He also sent a photo to his wife of a white man sitting beside him inside his vehicle. Talija responded to the crime scene before authorities after they showed no sense of urgency after her call. She saw her husband slumped over in the car next to the man from the photo. As people crowded around the woman and the vehicle, they observed a gun on the unidentified man’s lap, who was also deceased. An hour later, around 2:09 p.m., the Colorado Springs Police Department arrived at the Taco Bell parking lot where the bodies were found. The identity of the other male has not been released.

Talija believes her husband could have been saved had the police acted faster and taken the hostage call more seriously. Their headquarters were less than a mile from where the bodies were discovered. Civil rights lawyer Harry M. Daniels is now representing Qualin’s family and demanding explanations from the Colorado Springs Police about why it took an hour for them to respond to the hostage call.

“The Colorado Springs Police Department and El Paso County can make all the excuses they want, but the facts are simple. This was a hostage situation where Qualin Campbell was begging for his life. His wife called 911, the police were less than a mile away, but they never responded. Let’s be clear. If the police don’t respond to a hostage situation, none of us are safe,” Daniels shared in a press release. He also stated that he believed Qualin was taken hostage and ultimately killed by the suspected homeless man who entered his vehicle without consent.

An autopsy has been conducted on both men, but no cause of death has been released. The Colorado Springs Police Department is not commenting on the matter at this time.