Shortly after 1:30 a.m. on December 30, 2023, gunfire erupted inside the Viking Bar in the 4800 block of West Colfax Avenue in Denver. Four people were shot and taken to a local hospital; 38-year-old Jason Ira Lewis and 41-year-old Brandon Houston died of gunshot wounds, which the Denver Medical Examiner’s Office ruled homicides. Two other victims survived.

Denver Police identified 55-year-old Matthew Leaniel Johnson as the suspect and sought him on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder. Johnson was reported to have ties to Louisiana, Sacramento, Chicago and Colorado. The FBI joined the search, offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction, and ran 28 digital billboards across the Front Range and nearby counties displaying his image.

Lewis’s family has spoken of his absence and their desire for an arrest as a step toward closure. If anyone has information about Jason, the shooting that night, or Matthew Johnson’s whereabouts, please share what is known.