ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — A car theft suspect was shot and killed by deputies in Arapahoe County on Thursday morning, the sheriff's office said.
The confrontation happened around 7:40 a.m. in the 7400 block of East Harvard Avenue, according to a spokesman for the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office (ACSO).
A deputy came across a stolen vehicle at 7545 East Harvard Ave. in the parking lot of an apartment complex, according to spokesman John Bartmann. That's located near East Iliff Avenue and Quebec Street.
At that time, a deputy approached the vehicle, thinking it was unoccupied, but found that someone was inside the vehicle, and backed off. The deputy then called for cover cars.
When backup got there, deputies ordered the driver out of the vehicle, Bartmann said.
"The occupant was not complying with those orders, he then at one point backed his vehicle toward deputies, and it was a very small area deputies were up at the vehicle and were trying to get the suspect out of the vehicle," Bartmann said.
He said a single shot was fired as they attempted to get the suspect out of the vehicle and the suspect was hit. He died from his injuries.
The Arapahoe County coroner's office identified the man killed as 29-year-old Jamarian McGhee.
A total of three deputies were involved in the incident, but Bartmann said only one discharged their weapon and only one shot was fired.
Deputies found a firearm on the suspect, but Bartmann said the suspect did not fire the weapon, and it's not known at this time if the deputy who fired saw the gun before shots were fired.
Bartmann said deputies had been called the complex just prior to the shooting for a report of a person sleeping in the hallway at the apartment complex.
"We don't know if these were the same deputies who were coming to that call and saw it [the stolen car] or had dealt with that call and then came out or if it was a routine patrol. We're not sure," Bartmann said.
The deputies involved are on administrative leave which is standard procedure. The Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) is investigating the incident
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867 or visit metrodenvercrimestoppers.com. Tipsters can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000.
Metro Denver Crime Stoppers works by assigning a code to people who anonymously submit a tip. Information is shared with law enforcement, and Crime Stoppers is notified at the conclusion of the investigation.
From there, an awards committee reviews the information provided and, if the information leads to an arrest, the tipster will be notified. Rewards can be collected using the code numbers received when the tip was originally submitted.
> More information about Metro Denver Crime Stoppers can be found here.
> Additional Crime Stoppers bulletins can be found here.
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