Backseat Ambush: 2 Arrested In Lakewood Uber Driver Shooting

LAKEWOOD, CO – A 18-year-old man and a teen are accused of shooting of an Uber driver in Lakewood in June. They are also charged with car-jacking a Lyft driver in Denver earlier in the evening and using the stolen car as a getaway vehicle.

Quartez Smith, 18, and a 13-year-old boy were charged in Jefferson County with multiple felonies.

The incident occurred on June 13, when police said a 38-year-old Lakewood resident had been ambushed around 2:30 a.m. at the 7-Eleven at West Mississippi Avenue and South Pierce Street by two men who climbed into his back seat. He told police he parked his black Lincoln Town Car near the gas pumps and entered the store. He didn't realize the two were in his car until he began driving away, police said.

The victim drove briefly on Pierce Street, then the two threatened and robbed him, a police affidavit said. The victim told police the two robbers demanded his wallet and then became angry because he only had $20. They forced him to drive onto a side street where they made him get out of the car and patted him down for more valuables. Then the older robber, identified as Smith, allegedly fired three shots at a close range with a black and grey handgun. One shot hit the driver in the back. The two stole his phone and ran away.

A witness saw the two arrive in a white sedan at the 7-Eleven and enter the Lincoln. The witness told police that the two were seen soon afterwards running back to the gas station and driving off in the white sedan.

In spite of his injuries, the victim drove back to the 7-Eleven and asked the clerk to call 911. He was taken to St. Anthony Hospital for treatment of his wounds.

Investigators tied the crime to the armed robbery and carjacking of a Lyft driver in Denver an hour earlier. A man told police he was parked in the 1400 block of Glenarm Place when two males approached him and one held a silver handgun to his face and demanded he get out of the drivers seat. The driver told police the two males drove him around in his white 2014 Honda Accord demanding he go to a bank and withdraw money. He told them he didn't have any money and they took his cell phone and car and left, the affidavit said.

An abandoned white Honda was found near the 7-Eleven gas station with the driver's stolen phone found in a trash can nearby. Police said they found a stack of $20 bills in the Honda.

Fingerprints from the Honda and Lincoln were matched with Smith, the police affidavit said. He has a history of multiple criminal convictions including burglary, identity theft, robbery, theft and assault, the police affidavit said.

Smith was taken into custody by Denver police on July 3. He is being held in Denver County Jail on a $100,000 bond.

Smith was charged with multiple felonies including attempted murder, kidnapping and aggravated robbery.

He is next scheduled to appear in court Aug. 14.

The 13-year-old was charged in the juvenile court.

Related: Back Seat Robbery: Lakewood Man Shot By Strangers In His Car

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