AURORA, Colo. — Prosecutors have charged a 17-year-old boy as an adult with second-degree murder in connection with a deadly crash that occurred after Aurora Police said the teen stole a vehicle and was chased by officers.
Enrique Leon-Madera is also charged with the following:
- Second-degree murder
- Vehicular eluding
- Aggravated robbery
- Two counts vehicular homicide
- Two counts second-degree motor vehicle theft
- Possession of a handgun by a juvenile
According to Aurora Police, a man called 911 around 7 p.m. on March 17 to report he had been carjacked of his 2007 Jeep Cherokee near East 17th Avenue and Clinton Street. Roughly 10 minutes later, police located the stolen Cherokee near the intersection of Dallas Street and 25th Avenue, turned on their lights and sirens, and tried to stop the vehicle. The Jeep’s driver sped off, with the officers in pursuit.
An Aurora Police spokesperson said the pursuit was authorized given the “violent nature” of the auto theft. It lasted about four blocks – as the Jeep headed south on Dayton Street near 19th Avenue, the driver hit a speed bump and lost control, careening into three cars parked along the road, then slamming into a small SUV with 24-year-old Oliver Jose Zeledon Gongora inside. Gongora died from his injuries.
Gongora’s roommate, who asked that his name not be used, said the victim was parking his vehicle when the Cherokee smashed into it. The impact shoved the man’s car through a neighbor’s fence and into a front yard.
The man said he and Gongora are both from Nicaragua and had been working construction jobs in Colorado for the past several years.
Leon-Madera's next court date is scheduled for May 8.
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