Man Who Was Shot, Killed By Police In Lakewood ID'd

LAKEWOOD, CO — A man who was fatally shot by Denver police on the Fourth of July has been identified.

Leonel Mendez, 34, was a homicide suspect, police said. He was shot near the Colorado Mills Mall after Josefina Mendez-Pantoya, 54, was found strangled to death. Police had been tracking Mendez after he was identified as a suspect in her death.

Mendez-Pantoya was killed in a home in the 4700 block of N. Pearl Street Wednesday afternoon, police said.

Denver police notified Lakewood police at about 3:45 a.m. that they were tracking Mendez in Lakewood.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office was also assisting in the chase.

Then just after 4:10 a.m., a Denver police car crashed into Mendez's vehicle at Denver West Colorado Mills Parkway and Cole Boulevard, authorities said. The crash was a forced-stop maneuver.

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Mendez then ran away, and opened fire on officers after they pursued, Lakewood police said. Denver officers returned fire, and Mendez was taken to a hospital, where he died.

The Jefferson County Critical Response Team was investigating the shooting, and the Lakewood Police Department was investigating the crash between the patrol car and the suspect's vehicle.