A man accused of fatally stabbing two men over 100 times in Aurora in late June was denied bail by an Adams County Judge Tuesday afternoon.

Ricky Roybal-Smith, 38, was arrested by Denver police in connection with a hit-and-run crash while under the influence of drugs on June 29. Investigators later named him the suspect in a pair of fatal stabbings that took place in Aurora earlier that morning. 

The stabbings, which occurred within a half mile and one hour of each other in the early hours of June 29, claimed the lives of Jesse Schafer and Scott Davenport, Aurora Police Department Det. Thomas Starz testified while on the stand during Roybal-Smith’s preliminary hearing Tuesday.

During a preliminary hearing, prosecutors present evidence to a judge to determine if there’s enough to send a defendant to trial on criminal charges.

Roybal-Smith is no stranger to the criminal justice system, as court records show he was sentenced to 12 years in prison for a vehicular assault-DUI charge in 2016 before being arrested again for threatening a family with a knife at an Englewood Walmart in 2022. He also is suspected of killing his Denver Sheriffs Office Downtown Detention Center cellmate, Vincent Chacon, the night after his arrest — though charges have yet to be filed in that case. 

Surveillance footage of the stabbings published in court Tuesday by the prosecution — made up of 17th Judicial District Deputy District Attorneys David Ortiz and Jennifer Prince — captured Roybal-Smith at a 7Eleven store in the 1200 block of East Colfax Avenue around 12:30 a.m. that night. While inside, the man bought a bottle of water using a debit card that did not have a registered subscriber but was connected to a phone number matching that of a phone later found in Roybal-Smith’s possession, prosecutors said.

The appearance of the suspect in the videos also matched that of Roybal-Smith, Starz added, including the tattoos on his left hand and under his left eye.

After stopping at the store, surveillance footage then showed the suspect walking to and standing at a bus stop along Colfax Avenue for several minutes before he again started walking, this time in the direction of another stop along Peoria Street. That was where where he met up with Davenport.

The footage continued to show the suspect walking behind the bus stop — out of the view of drivers on Peoria — before Davenport followed him a few moments after. The ensuing footage was partially obstructed by a construction fence but depicts Davenport kneeling in front of the suspect before his body disappears from sight. 

The suspect can then be seen bending in and out of frame for the next few minutes of footage before he walks away. Davenport’s body was not seen on camera again after he initially disappeared.

Starz said that investigators believe Davenport was killed in that location around 12:45 a.m. His body was found about six hours later, with 90 stab wounds in his back.

After footage catches the suspect again walking past the same 7Eleven, he’s then seen walking alongside a parking lot in the 1500 block of North Moline Street joined by another man, whom prosecutors believe to be Scheffer. The two were then seen walking behind a row of bushes lining the parking lot when a fight broke out between the two of them.

The two tangled for a bit before the camera captured the suspect running away from the area. Scheffer was later found to have died from the 15 stab wounds he suffered to his chest, back and face, prosecutors said.

During cross examination, the defense — consisting of Public Defenders Amanda Miller, Nicole Kleiman-Moran and Lochlin Rosen — noted the lack of direct evidence connecting Roybal-Smith to the twin stabbings and highlighted that investigators had identified a few other potential suspects, but had not fully followed up with them as the investigation continued.

The defense also pointed the judge’s attention to an anonymous phone call the APD received that alleged the two incidents were connected and the suspect was someone other than Roybal-Smith. Starz said that, for various reasons, investigators determined that those leads were not as strong as the footage connecting Roybal-Smith to the crimes.

17th Judicial District Judge Brett Martin sided with the prosecution, determining that there was enough evidence to establish both probable cause and a great presumption of guilt, both needed to justify holding Roybal-Smith without bail.

After a break, Rosen requested a sequestration of the press, a Martin denied. The defense also declined to identify themselves and spell their names correctly to a Denver Gazette reporter after court was adjourned.

Roybal-Smith’s arraignment, where he is scheduled to enter a plea and a trial date could be set, is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 12.