Six demonstrators were arrested in connection to protests held in Aurora earlier this summer, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Lillian House, Joel Northam, John Ruch, Terrance Roberts, Whitney Lucero and Trey Quinn all face felonies and are accused of inciting or engaging in a riot, according to news releases from the 17th and 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Offices. Some are also accused of theft and kidnapping, records show.

Attorneys were not listed in online court records for any of the protesters.

The arrests are connected to demonstrations in Aurora on June 27, July 3, July 12 and July 25, when thousands protested the death of Elijah McClain by Aurora police officers.

McClain, a 23-year-old unarmed Black man, died after officers placed him in a carotid hold — which obstructs blood flow to the brain — and injected him with ketamine, while responding to a 911 report of a man wearing a ski mask that looked “sketchy.”

His death prompted protests calling for police accountability and a stop to police brutality. A demonstration on June 27, in which thousands attended, ended with police dispersing protesters, according to news accounts.

The police’s use of pepper spray and smoke canisters received harsh criticism at a city council meeting the following week, Denverite reported, and a councilwoman questioned why a largely peaceful protest ended in the way it did.

On July 6, about 600 protesters rallied near the Aurora Police Department’s District One police station, at 13347 E. Montview Blvd., and blocked streets with cars and items from nearby construction sites, according to a news release from the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. The protesters reportedly prevented 18 officers from leaving the building by barricading entrances and securing doors with wires, ropes, boards, picnic tables and sandbags, the DA’s office said. 

Some leaders of the group allegedly demanded the firing of two Aurora police officers and said they would “occupy” the station, stating that no one would come inside or exit the building, until they demands were met, the release stated. Officers were stuck inside the building for seven hours until the department’s Emergency Response Team dispersed the crowd at about 3 a.m. July 4, according to the DA’s office. 

“We support the First Amendment right of people to protest peacefully in our community but there is a difference between a peaceful protests and a riot. When individuals cross the line and break the law, they will be prosecuted,” said 17th District Attorney Dave Young in a statement.

Roberts and House have led protests in Denver and Aurora over the summer, according to The Denver Post. Roberts is a well-known in both cities for his activism and House was an organizer for the Party of Socialism and Liberation, the newspaper reported.

Northam and House were arrested on suspicion of more than a dozen counts of felonies, including inciting a riot and theft, court records show. Sentencing for each class felony ranges between one to three years in the Colorado Department of Corrections.